Pokemon Conquest: Flame of Hope
by Mephilia Venus
Summary: Okuni knows better than most how quickly peace can fade. She's seen it before. But the new enemy that Ransei finds itself threatened by six months after its unification wants far more than a castle, and when the flames begin, it may just fall to one dancer (and some unlikely allies) to reunite the kingdoms if they wish to protect everything they hold dear.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello there! This is a story I've been developing for multiple years, but I didn't want to start on until I felt my writing was at a level it definitely wasn't at when I first came up with the idea. Even that original idea has been through many changes, and what I've wound up with here is a very far cry from what this story began as. One note before starting proper: my Pokemon Conquest universe is a mash-up of the PC and Samurai Warriors canons. Don't worry if you haven't played SW; there's nothing so big that you would be totally lost if you were unfamiliar with them, but there are aspects of several characters which didn't make it into their PC counterparts that I do enjoy, so I chose to add them in here. As for what exactly they are... well, you'll probably see quickly. For those who are familiar with SW, this story is still set in the PC universe, I basically just took things I like from the games (mostly from 4) and added them in. After a lot of consideration, I did also decide against adding in any of the characters introduced in 4, just because PC already has a huge cast, even by Pokemon standards (sorry Koshosho my love).**

 **Finally, there are several extensions of the Conquest universe I just came up with on my own that I'm including here. However, one of my biggest fanfiction pet peeves is when the exposition/worldbuilding is done through ANs instead of within the actual story, so that's not going to happen. Once again, I expect you'll figure them out soon enough! So, without further ado, let's begin! And, as always, any and all reviews are appreciated!**

* * *

 _"An interesting proposal. But what would you be willing to give me in exchange for your freedom?"_

 _The battered, broken girl slowly raised her head to meet the woman's dark eye, even as the flames began to once more lick hungrily at her bare legs. "Anything."_

 _ **Prologue**_

For one single day, all of Ransei was completely calm.

Resting atop the roof of Spectra's castle, Okuni gave a contented sigh as she gazed out at the sunset. It wasn't the first of such panoramas that she had taken in during her life, but even with her personal bias concerning the Ghost kingdom, Okuni felt this was definitely one of the best. From her perch, her back was to the castle's infamous cemetery and battlefield, and she had an unbroken view of the dark pine forests that made up most of the kingdom. In the distance, she could even see the mountains that formed Spectra's border with Dragnor silhouetted on the horizon, and three blimps flying various banners had already soared overhead, adding to the picturesque view.

It had been six months since Ransei's unification under Lady Rei, and true to the promises of the legends, there had been a peacetime unrivaled by any other documented point in history. Okuni had plans to view this for herself; Lady No had requested that her junior warlord travel among the seventeen kingdoms and document the changes they had undergone since the blessing of the Legendary Pokemon had been restored. Exactly why Lady No wanted this information, Okuni wasn't quite sure, but she was happy to have an excuse to stretch her legs. It wasn't that Okuni disliked her permanent residence in Spectra, but after three years, waking up in the same place every morning could get dull compared to the much longer amount of time she had spent independently traveling from kingdom to kingdom.

As the shadows of twilight lengthened, Okuni had begun to climb down when something in the distance caught her eye. Dark storm clouds were gathering over Dragnor, and as she looked closer, she caught the distinctive flash of lightning. _"It's a good thing I won't be going in that direction tomorrow,"_ Okuni shuddered. _"I hate traveling on muddy roads."_

She leisurely slid her way down the rest of the roof to the overhang that marked the fourth-floor balcony and dropped over the side, swinging onto the wooden walkway encircling the castle's top floor. November nights were chilly this far north, especially when the wind was coming from Nixtorm, and she welcomed the warmth of the castle hallways. Okuni still preferred real flames to the eerie blue of the ghost fires however, and always saw to it that some were burning in her room during the colder months.

Before retiring for the night though, Okuni had made it a habit to report the day's events to Lady No. Walking to the end of the corridor, Okuni reached the large double doors that marked the entrance to the Ghost warlord's private rooms. She gently rapped on the door frame, and after a moment, heard a call of, "Come in."

Entering the room, Okuni seated herself on the floor across from Lady No. The Ghost warlord's hair fell freely past her chest in loose waves tonight, and in place of her normal yukata, she wore an amethyst-colored silk robe. In the corner of the room, Okuni could see Mismagius floating beside a vanity, watching the proceedings.

"Tea?" Lady No asked, folding up the note she had been writing. Okuni nodded, reaching for one of the cups already resting on the table. She caught a faint scent of roses and oranges as she poured herself a drink, and smiled to herself. Brewing Okuni's favorite kind of tea was equivalent to a grand parade in terms of send-offs from Lady No. After they had both drunk from their cups, Lady No remarked, "I take it you're here to deliver your daily report?"

Okuni nodded. "Yes, although on most fronts, there's not much _to_ report. Merchants are saying that the roads have never been safer, the treasury has always been secure since you became warlord, and you don't need me to tell you that politically-wise, we don't have any enemies." Okuni hesitated for a moment before breaching the next subject on her mind. "Ah, if you don't mind me asking, how are the spirits doing?"

Lady No took another sip of her tea before responding. "Well, they have been slightly more restless over the past several days, although that could simply be due to the approach of the full moon. I'm hardly in any danger of losing control over them, but it is tedious having to deal with rebellious ghosts, especially when there are so many other things I could be doing."

Nervously swallowing down the last of her tea, Okuni set the cup back on the table. "Oh, I see. Is that all?"

Lady No nodded. "You are dismissed. I expect you'll want to finish packing if you plan to leave at first light."

Making to exit the room, Okuni nevertheless halted for a moment at the doorway. _"Should I mention something about that storm I saw over Dragnor?"_ She shook her head, dismissing the thought and closing the door behind her before Lady No could take note of her pause. _"I have no reason to. Storms are always brewing this time of year, after all."_

Upon entering her room across the hall, Okuni was immediately greeted by the happy cries of her own partner Pokemon. "Why, good evening, you two!" Reaching into one of her pockets, she retrieved several berries she had purchased from the market earlier that day. "Eat up, we've got a big day tomorrow! And Scolipede, do kindly share with Larvesta this time!" The berries vanished from her hand within a matter of seconds, and soon both of her partners were curled up contentedly on the floor.

"Just one last thing," Okuni murmured, opening the trunk at the foot of her bed. _"Where did I put them... Aha!"_

They were a bit wrinkled, but hopefully that wouldn't affect their power too much. Spirit-repelling charms made by Okuni herself, and she was proud to say that (at least as far as she could tell) they did their job well. _"Since I won't be able to help keep the more restless spirits in check until I'm back, these will have to do."_

Okuni was suddenly hit with a wave of exhaustion, and changed out of her day clothes into a plain white yukata without fuss. Sliding into bed, her last thought before giving herself over to sleep was, _"I have to remember to check in with Setsuna once I get to Valora..."_

What exactly woke her that night, Okuni would never quite be able to tell. But as she sat up in bed and felt the overwhelming current of energy charging the atmosphere, any thoughts of sleep were instantly cleared from her mind. Okuni stepped out onto her balcony, breathing in the cool autumn air. _"Maybe that storm I saw over Dragnor is making its way south."_

As she thought this, a faint flicker of silver at the corner of her vision caught her attention. Okuni's eyes lit up as she turned towards the southwest road. _"A meteor shower!"_ It wasn't her first, but she hadn't had this good a view of one in some time. Humming a slow, regal-sounding tune that came to her on the spot, Okuni watched the silver streaks of light dash across the night sky for what may have been minutes or hours. _"I could make this into a dance if I wanted to."_

Eventually though, Okuni had to turn her back on the night and return to her bed. At the time, she couldn't have known that she was one of the only people in Ransei to have seen the meteor shower, or that its true nature was something so much larger. She couldn't have known that Lady No had also been awoken by the charge it had brought to the air, and also watched the stars fall from the sky. And neither woman saw every fragment of light collect just before dawn, nor the silver ripple that spread across the landscape when they all met.

No being in Ransei saw what was left behind when day finally broke and the last of the stars flickered out.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 1**_

"All set, you two?" Both of her Pokemon let out happy cries, and Okuni smiled.

"Great! I am too!" Even at the edge of the city, Spectra's castle could be seen silhouetted against the rising sun, and Okuni turned back to look at it one more time. _"Here's hoping things don't get too gloomy around here while I'm gone!"_

Having done this many times before, Okuni knew how to travel light. The majority of her clothes had been left in her room at the castle. All she tended to bring on trips of this nature were two or three spare outfits, a yukata for festivals, and (in case an opportunity were to present itself) a performing costume that better suited her dances than her everyday clothes. These, along with extra food and money, had been carefully packed and stored inside her rolled-up tent, which was now tied on top of Scolipede's back.

Tossing her two partner Pokemon some food, Okuni mentally went over her travel route one final time. _"Since I'm leaving early and traveling alone, I should be able to make it to Valora within a couple of days. I'll save Nixtorm and Dragnor for the return journey and then make for Avia. Once I'm there, I'll decide on whether I go to Cragspur, Yaksha, or Viperia next."_

Okuni felt Larvesta nudge against her leg, and giggled. "You're right, no point in standing around."

Slinging her parasol over her shoulder, she began humming a song with a tempo she felt set a good walking pace. Okuni traveled down the road in this manner for several hours without incident, until the pine trees that had been thickly clustered on both sides of the path just outside the city slowly began to thin. The sun had risen directly overhead when the sound of raised voices further ahead finally caused her to stop.

 _"That doesn't sound like other travelers."_ Slowing her pace, Okuni caught sight of three men and their Pokemon slightly ahead of her, surrounding a girl. Narrowing her eyes, Okuni motioned to Scolipede and Larvesta, and all three of them darted into the forest lining the road before they could be noticed. Now free to creep closer without the risk of being seen, Okuni gauged the situation.

Physically, the girl looked to be about the same age as Okuni; a year younger at most, although a few inches shorter. She wore a white, sleeveless dress that was definitely not suited for traveling, along with matching sleeves in the same style as the ones Lady No often wore. The neckline of the dress and hems of the sleeves were decorated with black embroidery, and around her waist was a slender belt that looked to be made of real gold. Easily her most striking feature was her thick, snowy white hair that fell in waves to her knees. In her hands was a gilded headpiece, which she was struggling to keep out of the grasp of the man nearest to her. There were no Pokémon anywhere near the girl, leaving her completely isolated.

Okuni crept forward a bit more, straining to make out what was unfolding before her.

"Listen, we don't want trouble. Just hand that pretty trinket over and things don't have to get messy." The Arbok at the man's side hissed menacingly, and the other two men behind him crossed their arms. Their own Pokemon, a Meowth and a Krokorok, were also staring the girl down. She took a step back, as though to run, but the first man grabbed her by the wrist, forcing her to drop the circlet.

Having seen more than enough, Okuni sighed. _"Just when I thought the last of bandits like these three had been run out of Spectra, too."_

"Stay hidden for now," she whispered to Scolipede and Larvesta before stepping back onto the road. "Is there a problem, gentlemen?"

All three men whipped around, looking Okuni over. Alarm crossed the face of the one with the Meowth, but the other two had clearly already deemed her to not be a threat.

"Just giving her some directions, miss!" their leader replied. "Nothing of your concern!"

Taking a step closer, Okuni responded with less cordiality, "Oh, but I think it is. After all, I see three of you, picking on one unarmed girl who doesn't even seem to have a Pokemon she can defend herself with. Or is robbing her blind the payment for directions to the nearest city?"

The bandit with the Krokorok moved forward. "He said it's not your concern. Besides, I don't see any weapons or Pokemon on you either. So I'd move along if I were you."

Smiling innocently, Okuni remarked, "I'm afraid that's where you're wrong."

She tapped her foot on the ground twice, and Scolipede and Larvesta emerged from the forest. Opening her parasol, Okuni pressed a hidden button on the handle, and the rows of thin, razor-sharp spikes that she had painstakingly attached to the fabric sprang up from where they usually lay flat, painted to blend in. Okuni had also designed the tip of the hilt to be removable and utilized as a dagger in the event of close combat, but she hadn't had to use that function yet.

Raising her voice, she called, "I don't think you deserve a second warning, but I'll give you one anyways. Leave her alone."

The bandit with the Meowth was now shaking his head. "Come on, this isn't worth it," he said to the leader. "I've heard stories about the junior warlord of Spectra, and this girl looks an awful lot like her."

"Quiet!" the taller bandit snapped back. "I don't give a damn who she may or may not be, it's still only one of her and three of us, as she so kindly pointed out! Let's defeat her too and line our pockets a little more!" At this, the three of them turned their backs on the white-haired girl and fanned out around Okuni.

Okuni sighed. "And I do so hate getting my hands dirty." Shifting her feet so that she was poised on her toes, she called out, "Scolipede, Larvesta, let's take care of these brutes!"

Scolipede struck first at the nearest target, the second bandit's Meowth. Venoshock hit it without pity, and the Normal Pokemon went down almost instantly. Meanwhile, Larvesta engulfed itself in flames and shot towards the third bandit and his Krokorok. Although Okuni's perfect link wasn't as physically strong as Scolipede, the attack was still enough to deal a decent amount of damage to Krokorok, as well as send its human partner running for cover. The Ground Pokemon bared its fangs in preparation to strike back, but Scolipede changed directions and knocked it out from behind with a well-placed Steamroller.

Seeing that the other girl was still rooted in place, Okuni met her eyes and shouted, "Why are you standing around? Get out of here!" The girl blinked, then turned and began to sprint down the road.

Looking over her shoulder, Okuni saw that Scolipede and Larvesta had moved on to the leader's Arbok and were making quick work of it. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the lead bandit trying to charge her from the side. _"Does he really think I'll be caught off guard that easily?"_

With the elegance of a dancer, Okuni spun to meet him - or, rather, her parasol met his arm. The bandit let out a howl of pain as the barbs connected with his unprotected skin, and Okuni pulled the parasol back before it could do too much damage. Loathsome as this man was, she hadn't started this fight with the intention of crippling him.

Closing her parasol, Okuni opted instead for a well-placed kick that knocked the bandit's legs out from under him. His Arbok lay long-since beaten on the road, and Scolipede and Larvesta joined her in leaning over its human partner.

Okuni planted her foot firmly on the bandit's back, and a quick glance down the road confirmed that his two companions were already fleeing with their injured Pokemon in tow. The lead bandit made a vain attempt to continue struggling, but Scolipede took over for Okuni, and one of its many legs was all it took to send him sprawling back on the dirt road. Kneeling down, Okuni took his chin in her hand and forced him to look her in the eyes.

"Now," she murmured, her voice dropping to almost a whisper and half an octave in pitch. "I want you to go and spread the word to every other would-be roadside thug in this region that Spectra does not tolerate thieves. And if I ever hear word that you've tried to rob another traveler, I will make sure I mention you to Lady No specifically. Is that understood?" The bandit gulped and nodded.

Standing back up, Okuni beamed at him. "Now, why don't you run along and get some help for your poor Pokemon!" Not looking back, the man scrambled away, his Arbok slowly slithering after him.

When they were gone, Okuni let out a great sigh, looking up at the treetops. _"What was that? Has Lady No has been rubbing off on me?"_

As she moved to check Scolipede and Larvesta for wounds, a flash of white caught Okuni's eye. The girl from before had returned. Approaching her, Okuni held out her hand. The girl was hesitant for a moment, but then smiled and took it. As she did so, Okuni was struck by the molten amber color of her eyes, with just a hint of emerald green flecks in the center.

"Thank you, for helping me," the girl nervously began. "I was caught off guard, and they had me surrounded before I could do anything. This is my first time traveling on my own, and like they said, I don't actually have a Pokemon…"

As Okuni took in the girl's out-of-place clothing, combined with this information, the pieces fell together. "Oh, I see! You're a priestess of Arceus, aren't you?" The priestesses were the closest thing that Ransei had to an organized religion. They had a temple in each of Ransei's major cities, where acolytes were trained from a young age to devote their lives to the creation Pokemon.

The girl blinked. "Is it obvious?"

Sympathy for her washed over Okuni, who still vividly remembered her own eventful first journey away from home, and how naive she had been. "Well, the outfit is a bit of a tip-off. First time out of the temple on your own?"

The girl nodded, speaking quickly. "Yes. I'm from the Aurora temple. I, ah, hadn't left since they took me in as a baby, so the high priestess decided to send me to the Valora temple so that I could see more of Ransei. But when I got to the airfield... well, it's embarassing, but I suppose I boarded the wrong blimp since I wound up in Dragnor instead. I know I could have just caught another one, but I am supposed to be broadening my worldview, and I figured it wouldn't be more than a few days' walk, so… here I am." She looked down, uncertainty in her eyes.

Okuni had made up her mind. "Well, I'm heading in that direction too, as it turns out! How about we travel together? I wouldn't mind a human companion."

Surprise registered on the girl's face. "Really? I think I would be more of a burden..."

"Nonsense!" Okuni insisted. "After what happened back there, I wouldn't feel right leaving you on your own."

Biting her lip nervously, the other girl took a moment to think. "Well, if you're absolutely sure... I suppose I should know your name?"

"Okuni! I'm not really from anywhere, although I guess you could say I've been based out of Spectra for the last few years."

"Oh, so it's true? You are this kingdom's junior warlord?"

Laughing uncomfortably, Okuni rubbed at her arm. Did _everyone_ in Ransei know about her position? "Yes, I am. Don't worry, I don't bite!"

Brushing her long hair out of her eyes, the girl laughed as well. "That's good to know! And I'm Hoshiko. The temple took me in from an orphanage, so I don't have a last name, but some of the priestesses called me 'Shirokami'. You know, since it means 'white hair'."

Eyeing Hoshiko's snowy hair, Okuni couldn't help but feel it was a fitting nickname. A low rumbling cut thought the air, and Okuni giggled upon realizing it was her new companion's stomach. "We can eat before we get going, if you'd like. I was about to stop for lunch anyways before all of that commotion happened."

Hoshiko blushed, but quickly regained her composure. "Well, if you really don't mind. And I suppose it will be nice to have someone else to travel with."

"I'm not worried!" Okuni grinned. "I think we're going to get along just fine!"

* * *

In the nearly six years she had been Spectra's warlord, No had developed the philosophy of never being content with simply holding power. She preferred to _radiate_ it. While it certainly helped that the nature of her relationship with Nobunaga had always been more intimate than simply one of his generals, No had never wanted that to be the only reason she held the loyalty of the warriors serving under her.

As the warlord of Spectra, No held the duty of ruling over both the living and the spirit inhabitants of the Ghost kingdom. The former were relatively easy to deal with, especially since she had employed Okuni. The latter required a more specific approach that only No could carry out.

At the very edge of the castle boundaries, past the battlefield, was a small shrine. No's very first order upon taking leadership of Spectra had been its rebuilding. Almost everyone who knew of its existence assumed it was the same as any other of its kind. Only a handful of people in all of Ransei knew its true purpose.

No had found that the best time to visit this shrine was between midnight and dawn, but a nagging feeling had taken hold in the back of her mind ever since her conversation with Okuni the night before. By midday, she had found herself unable to wait any longer. It was normal for spirits of both humans and Pokemon to grow more energetic with the approach of the full moon, but their recent behavior didn't match that description. The best word No could think of was as though they were _anticipating_ something.

Approaching the shrine's entrance with Mismagius floating behind her, No stopped at the threshold. Reaching into her sash, she pulled out a small glass vial filled with a clear perfume. When No uncorked it, the scent of rosemary escaped into the air as she dabbed the oil on both her wrists. Although No had yet to encounter a spirit beyond her abilities to control, it still never hurt to have a protective ward. She did wonder sometimes if it bothered Mismagius, although if so, her partner had never given any indication.

Upon entering the shrine, the lamps inside lit on their own, their flames glowing an otherwordly blue. The only sound was that of No's footsteps on the wooden floor. She had long stopped paying any mind to the shadows on the walls that writhed into all forms of unnatural shapes. At the opposite end of the shrine was a large brazier carved out of onyx. It was in front of this that No knelt, Mismagius hanging back just behind her.

To her left sat a small bowl of silvery-white powder. No gently sprinkled several grains into the bottom of the brazier, where they briefly glowed violet, and drew her hand back just in time to avoid being burned by the vivid purple flames that sprang to life. As No watched, they rose in height until they were nearly brushing the roof of the shrine, and began to bend.

Slowly, the silhouette of a middle-aged woman bearing a striking resemblance to No, clad in a black mourning kimono, appeared within the fire. Offering a bow, the spirit said, "Good afternoon, Lady No."

No inclined her head respectfully. "Good afternoon, Lady Hideko."

Hideko straightened, her outline growing fainter for a moment. "Why are you contacting me so early? You know it's easier for me to cross between the human and spirit worlds at night."

"I had a feeling this couldn't wait," No remarked. "But since this inconveniences you so, I'll be brief. Am I right to suspect that the recent spirit activity has more to it than just the lunar cycle?"

Hideko nodded. "Indeed. My duty as your medium between the two worlds can make it difficult for me to earn the trust of some spirits, as they're worried I'll spill all our secrets to you. You'll understand better when you die and become the medium for the next warlord of Spectra. But even I can detect that there has been a recent shift in spirit activity. If even the spirits in Spectra are behaving erratically, it may be of a more sinister nature than I originally thought. Even the Pokemon are acting out, not just the fallen warriors?"

"Yes," No confirmed. "Could a demon have crossed between the realms?"

"It's not entirely out of the question," Hideko admitted. "However, I can usually sense when something that large manages to escape into the human world. All the same, it wouldn't hurt to put the castle Pokemon on alert for one. And I'll check to see that everything is in order on this side as well. One could have managed to slip past me."

"Mismagius and I can handle it if that's all it is," No asserted. "Is there anything else currently within the spirit realm that could affect humans?"

Hideko frowned, looking thoughtful. "Not that I know of…" She shuddered suddenly, as though she had been doused in cold water, and when she spoke next her voice contained a sharp edge. "Put out the fire, No. Another spirit is - trying to - force through!" Her shape in the flames warped, then vanished altogether, to be replaced by the outline of a fortress.

Narrowing her eyes, No recognized the twin lightning rods of Violight's castle. Why was the fire showing her this?

Hideko's warning unheeded, No watched closely. At first, nothing happened, and No made to swipe her hand through the flames when a bright flash filled the image.

Even the fire itself seemed to shake - although that had to be a trick of the light. A yawning black hole swallowed the castle whole, then began to twist in on itself, giving the impression of a swirl of hair. Mismagius let out a warning cry as dozens of eyes began to peer out from the fire, foreground to a grisly image of Violight's castle now in ruins. Hideko's voice finally cut through to No. "Please, No, sever the connection!"

No blinked, then grimaced in disgust. "I don't tolerate spirits who refuse to learn their place!" she snapped, holding out her hand. "Hideko, restrain them on your side!"

Mismagius launched a Shadow Ball through the violet flames, extinguishing them instantly. The last thing No saw before they snapped out was the shadowy silhouette of a woman, and the brazier once again emptied.

A rush of wind strong enough to pull several strands of No's hair loose swirled around her, hissing when it came into contact with the rosemary at her wrists. No felt it brush past her and turned, making out a shadowy humanoid shape exiting the shrine that caused the torches standing by the door to sputter as it went past. It could only mean one thing - a powerful, angry spirit had just escaped into Spectra.

For a minute afterwards, both warlord and Pokemon were still. Reflecting on the haywire behavior of the fire, No supposed the most realistic explanation was that a spirit on Hideko's side had decided to create a distraction and escape into the human world. "But if that's the case, why go out of their way to create a divination fire?" she mused out loud. Her only response was a low sound of concern from Mismagius.

Scoffing, No remarked. "You know as well as I do the unlikeliness of that being a real vision." Her partner flapped the tips of its "cloak" irritably, more insistent now.

"Yes, very well," No sighed. "It is so fortunate I have you to act as my conscience. Much as I loathe dealing with that woman, I will inform her of what has passed."

 _"On the off chance that vision actually meant any danger for Violight,"_ she mentally added. "Does that satisfy you?" Mismagius gave a small nod.

Exiting the shrine, No thought about the long, likely sleepless night that awaited her. Proper spirit containment was a dreadfully complex process. _"It wouldn't do to start preparations much later than now. Afterwards, the warning to Lady Ginchiyo. Stopping that spirit from doing whatever it pleases in Spectra is more pressing. Whatever potential threats Violight may face will have to wait several more hours."_

* * *

At this same moment on the other side of Ransei, a pair of stormy gray eyes belonging to the warlord of Violight snapped open.

The first thing Ginchiyo noticed was how _bright_ her room was - she normally rose before dawn, and the combination of her duties and personal training guaranteed she almost never went to sleep until it was close to midnight. Climbing out of bed, Ginchiyo made her way to the window (having once again slept in her armor, she didn't bother getting dressed). Her eyes widened upon seeing the sun's position in the sky. It was practically noon!

 _"Why didn't Muneshige wake me?"_ As if summoned by the string of profanity that followed in Ginchiyo's mind, the door to her room slid open, revealing Muneshige holding two teacups.

"Ah, I see you're awake, Lady Ginchiyo!" he said with a sickeningly sincere smile. "All of those late nights finally caught up with you?"

"That's none of your concern!" Ginchiyo snapped. She always reserved her harshest tones for Muneshige, which was made easier by his unfailingly chipper attitude every morning.

 _"I'll never understand what drives him like that,"_ Ginchiyo thought. Eyeing the chipped teacups in her second-in-command's hand, she groaned, "I hope for your sake that's coffee. Maybe then you can explain why you let me sleep until near afternoon."

If he detected the underlying threat, Muneshige didn't let on. "Shipped into Valora direct from the Hoenn region. I ordered a new supply last week. It came in on a blimp this morning."

"And I should have been at the airfield to greet it!" Ginchiyo remarked, snatching the cup from his hand and downing half its contents in one swallow. At the same time, Luxray opened it eyes from where it had been sleeping and raised its head. Ginchiyo's mind began to clear immediately.

"Strong enough for you?"

"Of course! Now explain yourself!"

Muneshige sighed, running a hand through his hair (something he only did when he was trying not to laugh, not that Ginchiyo paid attention to details such as that). "Simple. You normally force yourself out of that bed at an hour most would cringe at just imagining. This is usually after you've had a grand total of four, maybe five hours of sleep if you cut your nightly training short. If you don't mind me saying so, that's not healthy for a person of any age, especially not so for someone as young as you or me. If I let you keep going on like that, your body could very well quit on you from exhaustion, and if that happens, I'm out of a job. As your junior warlord, I feel part of my duty is to be concerned for your well-being so that doesn't happen."

Ginchiyo blinked, taken aback. She hadn't expected such a thoughtful excuse, and that only served to make even her more irrationally angry. Finishing off the last of her coffee, she slammed the cup onto the tea table and stood, gesturing to Luxray. "Well, don't let it happen again! Now I have to make up for the time I lost this morning and still oversee the training of the new warriors!"

She stalked over to her one sparse dresser and wrapped her fingers around the grip of her father's sword, resting on its top. It, along with the title of warlord, had been Ginchiyo's only inheritance from him, and she never left the castle without it. Sheathing the serrated blade at her right hip, Ginchiyo made for the door, where Muneshige and Staraptor were already waiting. Luxray fell in behind her, its angry prowl a perfect mirror of its partner's.

As they entered the courtyard of Violight's castle, all thoughts of the vivid nightmare that had awoken her were driven from Ginchiyo's mind. For how could she have known that in two other kingdoms at that same moment, the same image of her home in ruins had appeared before two other warriors?


	3. Chapter 3

_**Chapter 2**_

'The kingdom of crystals' - as the rest of Ransei was now calling Illusio. For Aya, crystals were certainly all she seemed to see anymore.

Less than a week following the unification of Ransei, the inhabitants of Illusio had woken to find that overnight, the crystals that had once been confined to the castle battlefield had grown around the entire city. The castle itself was now encased by a layer of multicolored crystals that shimmered in both sunlight and moonlight. Amidst the initial confusion, Aya had discovered an old book in the castle library telling of what the blessing of the Legendary Pokemon would bestow upon Illusio were the kingdoms ever to be unified. It seemed that the expansion of the crystals was this effect. While Illusio was one of the only kingdoms to experience a change so drastic, Aya knew all of Ransei had been affected similarly in some way.

Even more curious about the crystals was that they could sustain life. Within a month, numerous gardens had sprung up throughout the city that used crystals instead of soil, and the flowers and foods that grew from them remained thriving even as winter fast approached. As for the palace, its current state could best be described as a floating prism. At the very top, the crystals formed a flat platform that stretched out several yards on all four sides, creating a courtyard of sorts. It was here that Aya had spent countless hours over the past several months. Its even, smooth surface provided the perfect environment for training.

Today, the autumn sunlight shone down on the roof without a cloud in sight. In the center of the courtyard, Aya and Froslass faced their opponents. Kanetsugu's eyes were narrowed in concentration, and even from a distance, Aya could see that Kadabra was similarly tense.

"It is the sign of ultimate connection with your Pokemon when you are able to command them in battle without the need for words," Aya instructed. "For example..."

Simply by closing her eyes, Aya could immediately feel the resonance between herself and Froslass. They had been partners for over ten years, and had come to know each others' thoughts and emotions almost perfectly at any given moment. Just from Aya moving her hand a certain way, Froslass knew whether to unleash Blizzard or Shadow Ball, to dodge an attack or to block one. Now, Aya flicked her fingers slightly to the right, a gesture most opponents would likely overlook entirely. But for Froslass, it was the cue for Icy Wind, and the Pokemon launched the attack with smooth elegance.

Kanetsugu and Kadabra both stood frozen until the last moment. Then, Kadabra teleported out of the way on its own accord, and Aya sighed. She couldn't deny that she was slightly disappointed. This particular lesson was taking longer than usual for her student to master.

"Try again," she commanded. "Avoid feeling like you have to dominate; you should be able to detect Kadabra's emotions on a level equal to yours. Don't be afraid to open your mind. It becomes more difficult for both of you when one of you is blocking the other."

Kanetsugu bowed his head. "Yes, my lady!"

"Good, let's try it again. Even if you can't strike back against me immediately, start by anticipating my attacks so that you can both deflect them."

The warriors and their Pokemon stood at equal distances from one another, each preparing their next move.

 _"Icy Wind once more, Froslass,"_ Aya thought. Her partner gave the subtlest of nods. Looking past Froslass, Aya was pleased to see that Kanetsugu had moved into a more natural stance, and that Kadabra looked to be no longer resisting him so strongly. Aya prepared to give Froslass the signal when a jolt ran through her body, as though she had been struck by lightning.

Awful images flashed before her eyes in the span of a heartbeat, but Aya saw each one in vivid detail. Violight's castle in ruins, shadows swirling in the sky, a blood red crescent moon, an otherwordly-looking woman's lips twisting in a triumphant smirk. A high keening echoed in Aya's ears, and she was struck by the sudden odd sensation that if she were to turn around just then, something darker than anything she had ever known would be towering over her. And then it was gone.

Aya blinked, gasping. An odd sensation ran through her body, and looking up, she saw that a Psyshock from Kadabra had successfully hit Froslass. Her partner hadn't suffered much damage, but Psychic attacks had stronger effects on both warrior and Pokemon than most other types. Despite his success, Aya could see the confusion in Kanetsugu's eyes. Normally, she would have at least ordered Froslass to block such an attack.

"My lady, is everything alright?" he asked.

Steadying herself, Aya nodded. "Yes. I'm afraid I didn't sleep very well last night, I'm likely just feeling the effects of that now."

 _"There's no sense in concerning him,"_ she thought to herself, returning her attention to the task at hand. "That was definitely an improvement," Aya noted. "I think that's enough for today. I have a matter I need to discuss with Kenshin. We shall continue tomorrow."

Her student bowed once more, averting his eyes as he did so. As Kanetsugu and Kadabra descended back into the castle, Aya found herself unconsciously reaching for the pendant strung around her neck. Pulling it from beneath her kimono, she rolled the small blue stone between her fingers in time with her breathing, as she had done for so many years.

The nightmares had first come when she was fourteen. They held none of the surreal qualities that usually indicated one was dreaming, and as such, Aya had often woken up positive that she had just witnessed the death of someone close to her, or been caught up in a disaster affecting some part of Ransei. When it had reached the point where the nightmares were a nightly occurrence, her mother had bought the pendant for Aya in the city and imbued it with psychic power intended to ward off negative energy. From then on, Aya had almost never taken it off, not even to bathe or sleep most nights. While the nightmares still came from time to time, she now went months, sometimes even years, between them, and the pendant always helped to calm her afterwards.

Two things troubled Aya about what she had just seen. The first was that she knew the feel of her nightmares by now, and that vision had fit them perfectly. But she clearly hadn't been asleep. The best way she could describe it was as though time had frozen so that those images could appear before her without interference.

The second was that her nightmares had a tendency to come true.

* * *

"What is it like, living in a castle?"

Okuni looked up from the bags she was untying from Scolipede's back. "Sorry?"

Hoshiko was arranging stones and kindling in a circle for a campfire. They had found a clearing in the forest just off the path as the sun began to set, and decided to set up camp there for the night. Hoshiko elaborated. "You did say you were a junior warlord, didn't you? So, what exactly do you do?"

Tugging the rolled-up tent off of Scolipede, Okuni thought about how to respond for a moment. "Well, Lady No handles all of the actual ruling. I like to think of myself as the link between the castle and the subjects, although I couldn't speak for all of my fellow junior warlords. Most of what I do involves learning what's making the lives of the townspeople and merchants difficult, and reporting that back to Lady No to see if there's anything we can do to fix it. Since we live in Spectra, a lot of the time it's spirits who can't keep their haunting to the graveyard. Fortunately, those are our specialty."

"What is Lady No like, then?" Hoshiko pressed. "I've heard many different things about her. Most seem to think she does well as a warlord, but not everyone approves of the way she took the position. Even some of the other priestesses at the temple say she's only warlord at all because she's Lord Nobunaga's -"

Okuni held out her hand, cutting Hoshiko off.

"Lady No did not sleep her way to the top, if that's what they're implying," she said, irritated. "In Spectra, the title of warlord is handed down by birthright, from mother to daughter. All Lady No did was take back what was rightfully hers. If Lord Nobunaga just so happened to help her do it, that doesn't prove anything."

"Oh no, I didn't mean I thought that!" Hoshiko quickly reassured. "But I've never actually met her, or any warlord other than Lady Rei, so all I know is what I hear. You've been Lady No's junior warlord for a while now, though. What's your perspective?"

Pausing for a moment, Okuni had to consider her response to that.

"The first time I met Lady No," she began slowly, "I remember thinking for a split second that she was some sort of goddess. It was three years ago, I was passing through Spectra during the summer festival and decided to perform and earn some extra money. I drew a large crowd, and there she was at the edge, watching me. Afterwards, I was on the ground collecting money, and someone offered a hand to help pull me up. I took it without giving it much thought, and suddenly I was face-to-face with the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Just looking at her, I knew there was something about her, you know? Without telling me outright who she was, she complimented my performance, and offered me and my Pokemon a place to stay for the night. Naturally, when that place turned out to be the castle, I pieced it all together."

Of course, this was only the beginning of the story. It had easily been one of the most eventful nights of Okuni's life, but for now, she didn't want to tell Hoshiko too much and give her the wrong idea of what Spectra was like. Okuni decided to settle on a conclusion similar to the one she had told the other junior warlords. "I had planned to leave the next morning, but I suppose something about Lady No just intrigued me. Before I knew it, I had entered her service. There's more to it than that, but the full story takes time for me to tell, and we need to have this tent up and that fire lit by nightfall."

After that, the two girls worked quickly, and within an hour their camp was laid out.

"I'm going to miss you after we reach Valora", Okuni remarked, surveying their campsite. "I'd forgotten how much faster things get done when you're not alone!"

Scolipede clicked its antennae together, and she giggled. "I'm not forgetting you two, I'm very grateful for the help you give me."

As they sat around the fire, Okuni reached into her food bag and retrieved half a loaf of bread, turning it over in her hand. "May as well finish this while it's fresh." She handed a piece to Hoshiko, and they ate in silence for several minutes. Finally, Okuni broke the quiet atmosphere that had settled over the clearing. "So, tell me a little more about yourself. You've spent your whole life in a temple, I'm sure that's interesting."

"I doubt it's what you're imagining," Hoshiko responded, prodding the fire. "I was born in Dragnor, but I was given to the priestesses so young, I barely remember. From there on, it was training as an acolyte and studying the history of Ransei that goes along with that. You know, Arceus has appeared more times throughout history than many people realize, it's just not always on a scale as large as the last time."

"Well, who could forget that?" Okuni recalled. "I was standing beneath Infinite Tower, waiting with most of Ransei's other warlords. We all thought either Lady Rei and her chosen five would be coming down, or Lord Nobunaga and his generals. When the Legendary Pokemon appeared instead, it was like-" Okuni stopped, bothered by something Hoshiko had said. "Hold on. You said you were born in Dragnor. Why would you have been raised in the Aurora temple?"

Hoshiko froze. "Did I say Dragnor? I, ah, I meant Aurora." She gave a small, nervous-sounding laugh, not quite meeting Okuni's eyes.

 _"Hm."_ Okuni knew the behavior of someone caught in a lie, but the priestess (and Okuni did believe that much was true) didn't seem inherently malicious. "It's fine," Okuni said. "We haven't even known each other a full day. Just because we're traveling together doesn't entitle me to your entire life story."

Hoshiko looked up, the surprise in her amber eyes genuine. "You're not upset?"

Okuni shrugged. "Most people have things that they hide until they feel like they can really trust somebody else with them. I certainly haven't told you everything about myself. But I still trust you. And if we stay in touch after this, I hope you can eventually trust me enough to feel like you don't have to hide your past. But I'm not going to force that, either."

A small glimmer of uncertainty still lingered in Hoshiko's eyes, but her overall demeanor was more that of relieved gratefulness.

"Thank you," she murmured. "It's just a little embarrassing, being out here without even a Pokemon before I met you."

"There's no shame in that!" Okuni insisted. "I was on my own for a long while before I encountered Scolipede, and it was even longer before I met Larvesta. I won't deny that traveling is easier with a Pokemon, but you're far from the only person in Ransei who does it without."

Looking up at the sky, she was surprised to see the constellations were already out. "Oh my, it's late! We should probably move into the tent. Valora is still several hours off." As if on cue, Hoshiko yawned, and both girls wasted no time settling down. Okuni drifted off quickly, but a full night's rest was not to be.

When she woke up some time later, she knew exactly what it was.

 _"Please, why now?"_ she groaned to herself. Rolling over, the sight of the inside of the tent confirmed her guess. Hoshiko's sleeping form was frozen mid-breath, and even the night breeze had stilled.

"I'm coming!" Okuni called, not bothering to keep quiet. Where the supernatural was concerned, those who were not meant to be involved were simply locked out.

Pushing open the tent flap, she was greeted by the sight of a young woman not much older than Okuni herself, with chest-length dark purple hair, sitting by the embers of the fire. She was clad in a deep red kimono patterned with black flower petals, and glanced up at the sound of Okuni's approach.

"At least it's you, Setsuna," Okuni sighed, noticing a flash of remorse that ran over Setsuna's face. "I'm not in the mood to deal with Yoko right now. Or ever, really."

"I wish I could laugh right now, Okuni," Setsuna said. She had always been the only one of them to call Okuni by her name. "Are you prepared?"

The shrine maiden's uneasiness increased tenfold. "Of course. Why?"

"You know why," Setsuna responded. "You have a job to do."

* * *

 _ **Earlier that day**_

Ginchiyo and Muneshige stood atop a hill overlooking the castle's training grounds, beneath the branches of an enormous maple tree. Winters in Violight brought cold, biting winds for months at a time, but these last golden days of autumn had always been Ginchiyo's favorite time of year. Briefly letting her eyes stray from the warriors going through their drills beneath them, she looked out to the horizon, sighing in content as the November wind ran through her short hair. Muneshige's chuckle brought her thoughts back to her surroundings.

"What's so funny?" she asked, turning around.

Muneshige made a poor attempt at hiding his smirk. "Nothing important. I just thought I actually saw Ginchiyo Tachibana _smiling_ for a split second. A once-a-in-lifetime occurrence, and I got to witness it firsthand."

Ginchiyo found herself once again resisting the urge to physically harm him. Sweet Arceus, it was tempting. Her right hand was already positioned on the hilt of her sword, and it wouldn't take much more of Muneshige's teasing to bring her weapon into the situation. Yet while Ginchiyo was certain that he enjoyed riling her up, she knew he never meant any true harm by it. _"I need to stop letting him get to me like this."_

Breaking her gaze away from Muneshige, Ginchiyo brought her focus back to the action happening below them. "Violight has seen an impressive number of new recruits this year," she remarked. "Better to have more warriors than necessary in a time of peace than to have too few in a time of crisis." Words first spoken by her father, which Ginchiyo had understood the value of all too painfully during the war.

She heard Muneshige give a small sigh, but he still moved to stand beside her. "The future is bright for Violight, and all of Ransei," he said. Pausing, he added, "Although, there's something I'd like to ask you."

But Ginchiyo never got to hear the question. At that moment, her attention was drawn upwards, to the red and gold leaves fluttering above them. Or, rather, had abruptly gone still. The very air felt thicker, and Staraptor flew down from the top of tree, letting out a cry of alarm. Looking down, Ginchiyo saw Luxray's hackles raised, its fur literally crackling with energy. She felt the familiar grip of her sword, and realized that she had already slid it halfway out of its sheath. Muneshige trailed off from whatever he had been saying, clearly noting the change too.

Later on, Ginchiyo would never be perfectly able to describe what those first few seconds had felt like. It was as though the entire world was hushed, and the tension built to such a point that every nerve and muscle in Ginchiyo's body was screaming at her to move, to run far away. Then a small pocket of black appeared in the sky, and a great roar blasted both warriors back.

The hole began to twist and grow as some malevolent smoke began to pour from it, although as it spiraled to the ground in shadowy tendrils, Ginchiyo saw that it was forming into twisted humanoid figures. Her face contorted into a horrified scowl as she realized what they were. _"Evil spirits. Just like Father used to talk about."_

They descended on the training ground first, and the screams began within seconds. All the while, the hole continued growing, and the sky over the castle was now darker than midnight. A different kind of wind buffeted Ginchiyo now, blocking her from racing to her soldiers' aid and seeming to tear away at her very essence. The darkness was advancing on them too quickly to outrun. Ginchiyo fell to one knee, straining to make out the silhouette of her beloved home. And all the while, the screams refused to end.

Just as she thought it was over, the world exploded into yellow light. Squinting, Ginchiyo realized that Luxray had acted on its own accord, and thrown up a dome of electricity around them. Even so, a few demons had slipped in, and to her disgust, their hands and weapons were stained with fresh blood. " _One for each of us,"_ Ginchiyo thought, counting Muneshige and Staraptor inside their tiny shelter. _They_ seemed to reach that conclusion as well, and one fell upon Ginchiyo within seconds.

There was no time to think. Her hand went up, and her sword with it. To her surprise, the blade seemed to actually hurt the demon, and its skin smoked where it had been impaled. Without hesitation, Ginchiyo sliced the sword downwards, carving a ragged black gash in the demon's torso. It gave an unearthly howl of pain before folding in on itself, vanishing. The stench of gore and decay hit Ginchiyo in a wave, but she wiped away the tears that formed in her eyes and charged towards Luxray.

All of her partner's energy was focused on sustaining their shield, and its attacker was exploiting that. Ginchiyo stabbed it from behind, and the demon fell effortlessly. _"They must not have expected anyone to put up a fight. They will learn what it means to challenge a Tachibana!"_

A screech from Staraptor drew her attention, where it was attempting to beat back the other two demons from attacking Muneshige with its wings. The gold light continued to dance around them all, beginning to disorient Ginchiyo. When she swung her sword next, it was poorly aimed, and the third demon's focus was brought to her. It gave a bloodchilling smile, and Ginchiyo knew it could sense her weakening.

 _"Give up,"_ a voice in her mind whispered. _"Your kingdom is gone."_

Fury consumed her, and she thrust forward blindly, cleanly taking the demon's head off.

"Muneshige!" she cried, and it distracted both her second in command and his assailant long enough for Staraptor to strike. The fourth demon was stunned for only a moment, but that was all Ginchiyo needed. Summoning every ounce of strength she had left, she let out a shout and met the demon head-on, striking it down in a flurry of blood and darkness.

When it was over, she stood on shaking legs, black creeping in at the edges of her vision. She heard Muneshige call her name. Then her senses failed her, and the world went quiet, devastatingly dark.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Chapter 3**_

Ginchiyo woke to pain. No, pain was an understatement. Pain was the sore muscles that came after a long training session, or a twisted ankle from executing an attack incorrectly. This felt like she had been trampled into the dirt by every army of Ransei combined, lit on fire, and then kicked in the head several more times for emphasis. She was distantly aware of the awfully vulnerable position her body was currently in - spread-eagled across the hard ground - but even the prospect of forcing open her eyes, much less climbing to her feet, caused her brain to scream protests.

Fortunately, Ginchiyo's pride fought back with just as much refusal to waver. _"Look at yourself, last of the Tachibana line, sprawled in the dirt like a insect! Are you a warlord of Violight or not?"_

At that, her stormcloud eyes shot open, and she began to almost unconsciously assess the damage to her body.

 _"Sight and hearing don't seem to be compromised, although I definitely took a blow to the head. Ribs are sore, but don't feel broken. Arms and legs still attached, although currently not responding without extra encouragement."_ Tilting her head so that her vision was now lined up with her sword hand, Ginchiyo narrowed her eyes and began to slowly move her fingers, gaining satisfaction as they finally curled into a fist. _"I'm not finished just yet, Father."_

Slowly, she eased herself up into a sitting position and cast her mind out, searching for Luxray. Ginchiyo barely held in a cry of relief as she found her partner's wavelength; exhausted, but definitely alive. Tracking it with her eyes now, Ginchiyo made out the collapsed, huddled shape of Luxray several yards away. Seeing the Electric Pokemon like this brought the memories of their last battle back in full force.

Gasping as she recalled the demons she had cut down, Ginchiyo's hand reached out towards where she had dropped her sword, searching for the familiar hilt. After the longest several seconds of her life, Ginchiyo found its smooth grip, and her breathing eased. At least if anything else came back for more, she wouldn't be completely defenseless. But could the same be said for... _"Muneshige!"_

She whipped her head in the direction of the enormous tree she had last seen Muneshige fighting for his life under, and caught the distinct brown shade of his hair in the grass. Spreading out from where the rest of his body must have been lying was an awful crimson stain.

"No," Ginchiyo whispered. Muneshige couldn't be dead. He hadn't been her second-in-command for four years to die unconscious; from the loss of his own treacherous blood. Before they could say goodbye. Driving her fist into the ground, Ginchiyo pushed herself up to one knee. It was then that a black flicker at the corner of her vision caused her to turn around.

The sight that greeted Ginchiyo almost drove her back to her knees. The sky over her beloved Violight pulsed with an unnatural darkness that belonged to no mere storm. A hole had been blown in the outer wall of the castle, potentially allowing the Legendary Pokemon only knew how many demons inside. And on the training field lay the massacred corpses of what had been Violight's finest upcoming warriors. The same field where Ginchiyo had linked with Luxray for the first time over a decade ago was now a mass grave.

Overlooking all of this from the hilltop was a woman in black, with raven-dark hair streaming down her back. For a brief delirious moment, Ginchiyo thought it was Lady No, until she realized the woman's shoulder was missing the dark purple tattoo indicating No's position as the warlord of Spectra. Even more puzzling was the contents of the woman's pale hand, some of which were still scattered on the ground around her - cherry blossom petals, even though the blooming season was long over.

Ginchiyo shakily stood on legs still reluctant to bear her weight and moved slowly towards the strange woman, sword held tight in her hand. As she drew closer, the sound of the woman muttering to herself stopped Ginchiyo in her tracks. The woman's voice was a commanding alto that somehow also held the scrape of metal on bone, and Ginchiyo couldn't tell if it was angry or excited.

"So, a little messenger from the spirit world got here first? Pity I didn't have enough strength to greet her then. This will have to do." She crushed the final few petals in her hand, turning around to face Ginchiyo so smoothly it was almost as though she was floating.

"You don't have a talent for staying quiet," she smirked. "Were you planning to cut me down with that sword like you did my poor ambassadors? I would be amazed if you could even lift it in your current state."

Counters formed in Ginchiyo's mind, but the woman's voice had an effect that left her rooted to the ground, only able to communicate with the anger blazing in her eyes. From the way this woman was talking, _she_ was the one responsible for the destruction that had been wreaked upon Violight's castle.

The woman met Ginchiyo's gaze, her eyes an unnaturally deep fuchsia, and raised an eyebrow. "That is no ordinary sword, I will give you credit. It holds a power no longer granted to humans, which leads me to believe it has been handed down for quite some time. So clearly, you're someone powerful."

Her gaze locked onto Ginchiyo's helm, and she sucked in an excited breath. "You're the _warlord_ of this poor castle, aren't you? You must forgive my unfamiliarity, I'm afraid I have been locked away for a very long time."

Turning away from Ginchiyo, the woman faced west, the midnight fabric of her gown standing against her pale skin like ink on fresh paper. Tilting her head back, she breathed in, closing her eyes.

"Ransei has changed, hasn't it?" It was not phrased as an inquiry.

Facing Ginchiyo again, the woman smiled. "Well, seeing as I only just regained enough strength to assume this form again, I'd rather not test if I am strong enough to eradicate you yet." Her lips curled into a taunting smile. "Although, I find you intriguing enough to where think I would let you live regardless."

Ginchiyo was now certain that whoever she was confronting could not be human. Calling upon what little of her strength had returned, she forced her voice to work once more. "What the hell are you? How does destroying Violight bring you any closer to achieving your goal?"

The woman blinked, now scowling. "As if I would disclose my entire ambition to you for no reason at all. You should learn to keep your mouth shut, little warlord."

She snapped her fingers, and fists of iron clamped around Ginchiyo's throat. The last thing Ginchiyo heard before her body succumbed to the lack of oxygen was, "And when you wake, remember to fear the darkness. Now that its queen has returned, you may find it much more restless."

* * *

The grim reapers, or shinigami as they were known in Ransei, had been with humankind since death was first personified. Okuni was the ninth to be rooted in Ransei, her predecessor being Setsuna. Most days, Okuni was able to live her life without disturbance, and she did so gladly. However, a cataclysm like the one in Violight meant many new, confused souls who might lash out at the living in panic or refusal to accept their fates. Which was why the bulk of Okuni's duties was ushering the newly deceased into the spirit realm.

Okuni stood on the field before Violight's castle, her black kimono fluttering in the wind. After Setsuna's summons, Okuni had magically changed into the ceremonial garb and taken Setsuna's hand, upon which they were both transported to the Electric kingdom. Even though time was more difficult to ascertain when constantly traveling between realms, Okuni felt she had to have been at this for hours. There couldn't be many more spirits left…

Setsuna hadn't even explained what had caused this massacre before leaving her here. Okuni was surprised to not see Lady Ginchiyo out among the wreckage in the living realm, yet the warlord certainly wasn't dead, for a spirit such as hers would definitely put up a fight before letting herself be escorted.

 _"I suppose that's a mystery for later,"_ Okuni thought, finally spotting what looked to be her last escort of the night. It was a girl about Okuni's own physical age, with light brown hair pulled back in a manner that only emphasized the youth in her face. Approaching her, Okuni asked slowly, "Hello. Are you lost?"

The girl turned around, tears welling in her eyes. "I don't know what's happened!" she cried. "The last thing I remember is training on the field, and then I woke up here! You're the first person who's talked to me since then."

Taking a deep breath, Okuni held out her hand. "I'll lead you to where everyone else went. There's nothing more for you here." She had stopped asking spirits their names countless years earlier.

The girl's face lit up, and she grasped Okuni's hand eagerly. A small sphere of light formed between their palms, enveloping the girl as images of her short life - and what fate would have had in store for her had she not been caught in this disaster - flickered through Okuni's mind. _"She would have been a great hero,"_ Okuni thought sadly. _"What a waste of a soul."_

The light spread up the girl's arm, and all that remained within a minute was her soul in its purest form, a glowing orb resembling a lantern. Okuni raised her hands and let the soul float into the sky, where it would be received into the spirit realm. She felt a small spark in her chest, and knew the soul had been accepted. Humming a few short notes, she watched as the air around her shimmered before pale pink cherry blossom petals fluttered down around her, to be left behind in the human realm. They were always the only sign she ever left of her presence.

Closing her eyes, Okuni let herself dissolve into the folds separating the Ransei of humans and the Ransei of spirits, and upon opening them found herself standing back at her and Hoshiko's campsite. Setsuna sat once again by the ashes of the fire, not seeming to have moved despite Okuni having been gone for several hours. "It's done," Okuni said, pretending to watch the stars fade out if only to avoid having to meet her predecessor's gaze.

Setsuna said nothing, gracious enough to not press Okuni for details. Once Okuni was sure she was gone, she turned back towards the tent, and had just slipped back beneath her blanket when she heard Hoshiko stir. _"Of course."_

"What are you doing?" Hoshiko murmured. Okuni's heart skipped a beat until she realized the priestess was just talking in her sleep. Hoshiko thrashed beneath her blanket, and cried out, "Stop! You're hurting me!"

 _"A nightmare?"_ Okuni reached across the thin gap separating them and shook Hoshiko by the arm. The priestess' amber eyes snapped open, her chest heaving rapidly as she struggled to control her breathing.

"O - Okuni? Is that you?" she asked.

"You seemed like you were having a bad dream. I'm sorry if you didn't want to be woken," Okuni said.

Hoshiko blinked. "Oh. No, it's fine. Thank you. Just a nightmare, like you said."

Okuni pulled herself up so she was sitting on her knees, still concerned. "Can you remember the details? It may help to talk about it."

Hoshiko seemed hesitant to the idea at first, but then sighed. "Why not?"

Thinking for a moment, she breathed in and began. "When it started, I was high in the clouds, as though I was flying. Eventually, I landed on top of a tall building, although I'm not sure if it was a castle. Then, somebody called my name. It almost sounded like the high priestess of my old temple, enough that I trusted it, but something about it didn't seem right either. And then-"

Okuni nodded. "And then?"

Hoshiko shuddered before continuing. "Then chains came out of nowhere and tied me down. No matter how much I struggled or cried out for help, nobody came. Well, not exactly. One person came. They talked like they knew me, even though I'd never seen them before. They - they took out a knife and plunged it towards my heart, but I moved at the last second, and the blade missed by a few inches. It still hurt like it was real, though. I felt as though I was being ripped in two… and then you woke me up."

Sitting for a moment, Okuni took in Hoshiko's description. "That does sound upsetting," she finally responded. "I have nightmares that feel real too. For me, it helps to separate what I know are memories, and what my mind just created to make it worse. I think that should be easier for you than for me, though."

Thankfully, Hoshiko didn't try to pursue what it could be that haunted Okuni's dreams at night. She smiled, took a deep breath, and nodded.

"Thank you, Okuni. I'll remember that." Standing, she began to tidy up her section of the tent. "How soon until we break camp?"

Grateful for the change in subject, Okuni started tying their sheets into bedrolls. "We can leave within an hour if we're fast. If this clear weather holds out, we could reach Valora by the end of the day."

"In that case, let's not waste time!" Hoshiko declared. Okuni exited the tent to wake Scolipede and Larvesta, and as always, confined the events of the night to the back of her mind. Her two lives had not collided in many decades. (One of the only perks of being a shinigami was eternal youth.) Why should the previous night be any different?

* * *

Stony gray clouds hung over the Valora skyline, filling the air with the promise of a storm. Ina halfway expected to be able to hold out her hand and feel raindrops against her skin, as though the simple gesture could make the sky open.

 _"It's for the better if I finish up in the city before the storm,"_ she reminded herself. _"I don't think even Quagsire would enjoy having to hike back to the castle in a downpour."_

Lowering the hood of her cloak, Ina stepped into the center of Valora's famous outdoor market, where goods from all kingdoms and other regions were traded and sold. During the war that had raged for her entire seventeen years of life, Valora had only received three or four ships from the outside world a year, and their meager cargo had failed to satisfy Ina's curiosity. Now, it was rare that a week went by without some new good being discovered for trade. Lord Ieyasu had even ordered a shipment of radios from Kanto, in the hopes of establishing swifter communication throughout the kingdom, and hopefully all of Ransei in the future. The Steel kingdom's warlord was determined to make up for lost time and finish the modernization of Valora that had begun before Ina's birth, when Ransei had still been at relative peace. There was talk of creating ports in Fontaine and Illusio as well, and Violight and Avia had already expanded their airfields to accommodate the larger aircraft of outside regions.

Ina tried her best to maneuver through the crowd without drawing too much attention, although this was hampered by the large, awkwardly wrapped bundle she held under one arm. Quagsire and Prinplup walked on both sides of her, helping her push through the masses. Late afternoon was when the market saw its largest amount of traffic, so Ina normally tried to go in the morning. However, word of her birthday seemed to have reached every servant in the castle, and Ina had been stopped at least a dozen times as she was leaving to be wished a fortunate year.

When her thoughts strayed back to the gift her father had given her that morning though, Ina's heart sped up. As usual, both they and their Pokemon had battled in the castle's massive training room. Ina had shown faster communication with Prinplup, but when it came to physical combat, she was still almost always bested by the legendary Tadakatsu.

Afterwards, Ina had expected her father to leave for the throne room and assist Lord Ieyasu with the day's demands, but instead he had led her to the armory. Ina had only been inside the massive steel vault that held the backbone of Valora's might a handful of times, and couldn't help but gaze in awe at the battlefield-sized room. Shelves upon shelves were lined in neat metal rows, holding everything from standard-issue naginatas and katanas to elaborately carved battleaxes and bows taller than Ina. She even saw the glinting muzzles of rifles inside a glass case, although they had clearly never seen combat beyond the castle's firing range.

The wall at the far end of the room was home to the weapons of Valora's past warlords, and in some cases their most loyal retainers. Ina's mind was racing by this point as she wondered what her father could have possibly brought her here for. Her unspoken query was answered as Tadakatsu stooped to collect a bundle at the foot of the display - the same one now held tightly under Ina's arm.

"Sit," he had said.

Once they were both kneeling on the smooth floor of the armory, her father had gently unrolled the cloth wrappings, and Ina hadn't been able to help but gasp. Even in pieces, the bow laying before her was easily the most beautiful weapon she had ever seen. It gleamed like polished silver, and a clear blue sapphire was set into the metal.

"It was your mother's, before it fell into this state," Tadakatsu had explained. "You are ready to wield it." Ina had fought back the tears threatening to well up in her eyes, and was now on her way to the blacksmith to see what could be done about reforging the bow.

Yuuki and her father had fought side by side in Valora's army before Yuuki switched trades, and to this day he was still the only blacksmith Tadakatsu trusted to handle his weapons and armor. Both men had remained friends throughout the years, and Yuuki was practically family to Ina. So when she approached his stall, the older man barely had to look up before chuckling. "Your old man told me you would be coming." Clearing a space on the table, he asked, "What have you got for me?"

Ina gently set down the bundle containing the bow and untied it. Yuuki sucked in a breath, and his deep brown eyes briefly clouded over with memories. "So he's letting you have Asahi's bow? Between this and those Pokemon of yours, you'll be unstoppable before long!"

"You can piece it back together, then?" Ina said.

Yuuki pretended to be wounded at that. "There's no need to make it sound like this is beyond my abilities! I'll do it, and free of charge. Anything for you, kid. Come back tomorrow and it'll be good as new."

"Thank you very much!" Ina bowed, but something on one of the tables caught her eye before she could leave. Walking over, she ignored Prinplup's disdainful cry at the sight of the blade, clearly a failed dagger now being sold as scrap metal.

 _"This is still nice and sharp,"_ Ina thought, picking it up. _"It's light, too."_

Her eyes moved back to the bow Yuuki was now spreading out on his workspace behind the booth, and an idea burst into her head.

"Yuuki!" she called. "What would happen if you took some of this scrap metal and welded it to the bow?"

Yuuki looked puzzled for a moment, then comprehension dawned in his eyes as he finished her thought. "Some nice blades on both ends just in case all else fails? I like the way you think." He gave a firm nod. "Yeah, that's definitely something I can do!"

Excited, Ina turned back to the scrap table to find another suitable blade - and collided hands with another girl reaching for the same piece.

"Oh! Sorry!" the other girl said, pulling her arm back. She was wearing the red and white normally associated with shrine maidens, had a slim build, and pretty brown hair that loosely framed her face before turning into braids at her neck. Ina felt as though they had met before, but where that might have been was just out of reach.

The shrine maiden opened her mouth to speak when she was broken off by a white-haired girl in priestess' robes walking up next to her, holding a small pendant. "I didn't realize things like this were sold here! What do you think, Okuni?" she asked.

Ina's scattered thoughts instantly fell into place.

 _"The junior warlord of Spectra!"_ They had spoken in passing when Valora had hosted the previous year's warlord conference, but afterwards, Ina had been confined to Valora until the very end of Lord Nobunaga's war. _"That doesn't explain why she's back here though, and with a priestess of Arceus at that."_

Okuni inspected the pendant, then shook her head.

"That isn't real gold, just something to scam tourists. Sorry, Hoshiko." Turning to Ina, she held out her hand. "Hello again, by the way! Ina, right? I'm Okuni, and this is my traveling companion, Hoshiko. I was actually taking her to the temple here, but we decided to do some sightseeing first." Behind her, the Scolipede and Larvesta that Ina remembered were Okuni's partners cried out greetings.

"It's nice to see you again, and it's a pleasure to meet you, Hoshiko," Ina responded. Pausing for a moment, she said, "You know, if you're not in a rush, I know a great place near here to get some food."

"That would be much appreciated!" Okuni laughed. "What do you say, Hoshiko?"

They turned to Okuni's companion, and saw her staring at the far end of the square, trying to make something out. The cheap charm she had been holding clattered to the gray cobblestones that made up the market floor.

"Okuni?" she asked. "Do you feel anything strange?"

Okuni froze, and Ina felt an unconscious shift in her own bearing as well. Something in the air was very out of order. Then, out of the corner of her eye, Ina saw a dark shadow moving towards them.

"Get down!" she shouted, and then an explosion knocked the world sideways. People in the crowd began screaming immediately, and Ina barely managed to save Prinplup from being trampled in the chaos.

"Okuni? Hoshiko?" Ina shouted, and she caught a glimpse of Okuni helping Hoshiko up through the throngs of people shoving past her. Fighting her way through the panic, Ina and her Pokemon made their way to the other two girls. "What's happening?"

"The temple!" Hoshiko wailed. "The explosion came from the temple!" Ina dared a quick look at the skyline, and saw that Hoshiko was right. Smoke was rising from the northern end of the market that served as the public entrance to Valora's temple of Arceus. Looking back at Okuni, Ina gasped as she saw lithe figures that were partially concealed in shadows moving through the crowd, tearing down anyone who ran into their path. Their behavior was as though they were searching for something. Just as Ina realized this, two of them caught sight of Okuni and Hoshiko, gestured to each other, and began darting towards them with frightening speed.

There was no time to think. Ina linked her mind to Prinplup's, breathed in, and ordered her partner to attack. "Watch out, Okuni!" she called just as Prinplup loosed a Water Pulse in the shadow's direction.

Okuni whipped her head around to see the shadow-person. Her eyes narrowed, and she turned back to Ina. Even as a second explosion sounded from somewhere south of them, she was unfazed. "All three of us need to get out of here now. Follow me!" she barked.

Hoshiko was back on her feet, and seemed in no hurry to separate her wrist from Okuni's grip. The three of them began running towards the market's eastern exit - away from the castle, Ina realized as her heart sank. Wherever Okuni was leading them, it certainly didn't seem to be the sanctuary of Valora castle's iron walls.

They raced down several narrow streets and alleyways, until Ina regained enough of her bearings to know that they were now in one of the less savory parts of the city. This was where you came to purchase goods and services not offered in the more respectable main market. Of course, the more respectable main market had also just been attacked by shadow assassins, so maybe this area was the preferable alternative today.

Okuni led the three of them inside an empty warehouse, and paused to let Ina and Hoshiko catch their breath. "If we haven't lost them by now, there's not much more we can do," she panted.

Amazingly, all four of their Pokemon had somehow made it as well, and Ina had never felt more grateful for the reassuring presences of Quagsire and Prinplup. "What happened back there? Whatever those things were, it seemed like they were after you two!" she asked after catching her breath.

"Demons," Hoshiko said, shaking. She looked like a cornered animal, and her amber eyes kept glancing back to the entrance of the warehouse, even though Okuni had taken care to block it with several crates.

Okuni looked at Hoshiko in surprise. "You recognize them?"

Hoshiko nodded. "I read about them at my old temple. But it said that there's often years between when a real demon makes it into the human world, and we saw at least five of them in the market!"

Ina was doing her best to keep up, but she was beginning to feel like she had walked in on a story that had already been halfway told. "Hold on, do you mean to tell me that those weren't _humans_ back there? Isn't that kind of thing supposed to only happen in Spectra?"

Okuni sighed. "You'd be surprised." Then her eyes brightened with the beginnings of an idea. "Wait, that's it! We have to get to the airfield now before people start trying to leave the city in hordes."

Blinking, Ina realized what Okuni was implying. "Wait, you expect me to come with you? With all due respect, it's my _home_ that was just attacked. Lord Ieyasu and my father wouldn't have me running off to another kingdom, and I don't want to either!"

Okuni looked back at the blocked door, and Ina became aware of distant shouting and sounds of a fight. The shrine maiden seemed to weigh her options, before groaning and turning back towards Ina. "Listen, I don't mean to sound pushy, but those demons saw you helping me and Hoshiko. The walls around Valora's castle won't keep them out, trust me on that. You're not going to be safe unless you're with someone who knows what they're dealing with, and luckily, I do. I think Lord Ieyasu will understand that you're just trying to stay alive."

The sounds of fighting had grown louder now, and Ina heard a pained scream being cut short. She hated herself for thinking it, but she knew Okuni was right, even if that meant Ina had to leave her home to the mercy of whatever these things were. "Alright, to the airfield."

Prinplup didn't seem pleased either (and while Quagsire's expression almost never changed, Ina could sense its discomfort through their link), but neither of her partners outwardly protested as they exited the warehouse. Okuni seemed to already know the way to the airfield, which made their flight through the city much easier. Ina briefly wondered how someone who hadn't spent their whole life in Valora could know the labyrinth of streets so well, but she pushed the thought aside. What did it matter as long as they got out of this safely?

Even running, it took about ten minutes to reach the airfield, and they had to take several detours to avoid the sounds of scuffles. When they passed by the entrance to the market once more, Ina had to suppress a sob as she saw the rubble littering the ground, and several bodies that weren't moving. _"Why would anything do this?"_

The buildings towering over them on both sides abruptly ended on an open field, and Ina heard Okuni cry out with relief. "Hurry!" she said, and as if on cue, another explosion erupted somewhere in the city.

"Which one?" Ina shouted over the sound of blimps taking off.

Okuni pointed to one of the only crafts still on the ground. A deep purple flag flew from the top, and she waved her arms at a man Ina assumed was the pilot. He didn't look happy to be delayed, but Okuni was unstoppable. She raced up the boarding ramp, and while Ina couldn't hear their following conversation, she could see the pilot's face change as Okuni pressed several more pieces of gold than necessary into his hand. Okuni beckoned Ina and Hoshiko on board as two things happened.

The western end of the airfield went up in flames, and three more figures melted from the shadows. They were unmistakably gesturing towards Hoshiko, and Ina heard one of them shout above the din in an awful rasp, "Kill her!"

Meeting Hoshiko's eyes, the two girls made for the boarding ramp with increased speed. The blimp was already taking off as the door closed behind them, just as the dark figures reached where the girls had been standing a minute before.

"Right now, the three of us must have the most incredible luck in Ransei," Okuni panted. "The pilot was just making a supply delivery, and the only reason he didn't take off with everyone else when the market was attacked is because he needed to refuel."

Ina's heart lurched as she heard something make contact with the bottom of the blimp, but Okuni shook her head. "The bottom of this is solid steel, nothing is bringing us down short of a strike from the Legendary Pokemon itself."

"Isn't that a relief," Hoshiko said, bringing her presence back to Ina's attention. At that, both she and Prinplup rounded on the priestess.

"If you don't mind me saying so, I think it's in all our best interests right now to know exactly who you are. Something tells me a simple priestess of Arceus doesn't normally have to worry about demonic assassins trying to blow her up." Even as Ina heard herself saying those words, she was still having trouble wrapping her mind around the true implications of the situation. _"Demons just attacked my home. I'm on a blimp to who-knows-where with their target and the junior warlord of Spectra..."_

A moment passed before Ina remembered the flag the blimp was flying.

"Spectra!" she cried out, turning to Okuni. "Is that where we're going?" She had heard plenty of stories about Spectra, not all of them pleasant. Even more of an enigma was Lady No, whom Ina had only caught glimpses of at the previous year's warlord conference.

Okuni nodded, and the shadow that fell over her face reminded Ina of an old fortune-teller she had once seen at a festival. "This goes far beyond any documented demon disturbances that I know of," Okuni murmured. "Simple exorcisms aren't going to do. Right now, Lady No has the most knowledge on matters like this of anyone in Ransei, so it looks like I'm returning to my duties earlier than planned. And my dragging you into this at least means you get to come along for the ride, Ina."

The shrine maiden's eyes changed back just as abruptly, once again looking their age. "Spectra is still a couple of hours off. I have something with the pilot I need to take care of, but after that, I think we should follow Ina's advice and get to know each other. If we're going to get surprised again once we're on the ground, I'd like to know why next time."


	5. Chapter 5

**_Chapter 4_**

Okuni left Ina and Hoshiko in the passenger bay and made her way to the upper levels of the blimp, where the private cabins were located. These rooms were sectioned off for warlords and their retainers to use on longer journeys, and while the flight to Spectra was too short to demand their usage for their intended purpose, Okuni knew she wouldn't be overheard within one.

Opening the door to the first cabin, Okuni stepped into what was by all purposes a small bedroom. Scolipede and Larvesta remained outside, partially to alert Okuni if Ina or Hoshiko came looking for her, and partially because Scolipede's added bulk would make the room an uncomfortably tight fit.

Reaching into the bag slung over her shoulder, Okuni felt a surge of gratefulness that it had survived all the running through Valora. "Please don't let anything have been crushed," she muttered as she retrieved the materials she needed for this - incense sticks, paper, a portable burner, and ink.

She lit the incense first, waiting until the smoke was drifting upwards in lazy coils before flattening the paper of the floor and writing down a name. Okuni folded the paper four times, then dropped it into the flame. As it was consumed, the spark of irritation Okuni had felt ever since the warehouse burned brighter.

Fortunately, she didn't have to wait long. As the last of the paper crumbled into ash, Okuni once again felt the familiar stilling of her surroundings. The smoke hanging in midair from the incense thickened into a human shape, and then Okuni was face-to-face with Setsuna. The purple-haired woman opened her mouth to greet Okuni, but Okuni wasn't in the mood for formalities.

"Why didn't you tell me what happened in Violight was an organized demon attack?" she began, catching Setsuna off guard. "And don't try to deny it, because I was just chased through Valora by half a dozen of them! How did this even happen? And why did you put me to work collecting souls last night like nothing was wrong? I could have helped you locate whatever portal they're using, you know! Just because I'm still paying off my debt doesn't mean I deserve to be locked out of important information!"

The surprise that registered on Setsuna's face when Okuni was finished gave Okuni a selfish surge of satisfaction. _"Good. That will let her know I expect answers."_

While Okuni wouldn't have said she was on friendly terms with any of Ransei's former shinigami, she had always felt the closest kinship with Setsuna. In return, Setsuna had made the largest effort to help Okuni when she had taken up the reaper mantle. Maybe it had been out of pity, but since then, they had formed a tentative bond. So Okuni figured that raising her voice against any of her predecessors, much less the only one who routinely acknowledged her existence, must have been a shock for Setsuna.

The older shinigami raised her hands in a peace offering. "This explanation may take a while. If I promise to tell you all I know, will you hear me out?" She crossed the floor of the compartment, sitting on the bed and making an emphasis of leaving a space beside her.

Okuni recognized the gesture for what it was. She sat beside Setsuna, who thankfully didn't try to stall or divert the subject.

"I'll answer your questions in order. First and foremost, the decision to conceal the true nature of the attack was one I argued against, as well as Tsukiyama." That information surprised Okuni. Out of all Ransei's former shinigami, she hadn't expected to find an ally in the former princess of Illusio.

'What possible benefit could there be to keeping me in the dark, though?" Okuni asked. "Do the others consider me a burden?"

Setsuna seemed to weigh her next answer carefully. "Part of it is a matter of pride, especially on Yoko's part," she admitted. "Tsukiyama and I are the only ones who don't believe the existing order will be enough counter this threat. In Yoko's mind, turning to not only our current reaper, but also the one with the highest soul debt out of any of us would be a concession of weakness. It wouldn't do to seem as though we were unprepared."

As the implication of what Setsuna was saying hit Okuni, her jaw dropped. "You mean, you all _knew_ this was going to happen? For how long?"

"Bringing us to the next topic," Setsuna sighed. "You remember your... time in the spirit realm. You witnessed firsthand how the shinigami have labored for thousands of years to ensure that demons remain sealed behind the Burning Gates."

 _"And if any poor human souls who get dragged along with them get stuck in there too, that's just too bad, isn't it?"_ Okuni bit the remark back. Her situation back then hadn't been Setsuna's fault.

"I know about the way the Gates were designed," she said instead. "The outer wall is a circle, and past the entrance, it's divided into rings. The smaller demons that couldn't do much damage on their own are kept within the rim, and the further in you go, the more dangerous they become." Not even Yoko risked journeying all the way into the center on her own, Okuni knew for a fact.

Setsuna nodded. "For about a year now, we've been sensing disturbances from the heart of the Gates, stirrings of power from demons that were supposed to have remained magically subdued for the rest of time. But we did nothing until yesterday." She winced at the thought before continuing.

"We finally felt a flare too strong for us to ignore. We were prepared for the worst - and we were greeted by it. A monstrosity as old as Ransei itself had built up enough strength to break its bonds. By the time we arrived, it had already freed several more of its kind. Of course, we fought them. We had even managed to force a handful back into their seals when someone in your world created a gateway. Whether or not they did so intentionally, that was all it took. Yoko was about to strike the final blow to their leader when it escaped through that gateway. It must have traveled to Violight afterwards." Setsuna drew in a pained breath, and Okuni noticed for the first time the edges of what looked like a burn on the purple-haired woman's neck.

"After that, it was like the remaining demons grew stronger. We... we hadn't fought true demons in so long, we had forgotten how resilient they could be. We were _losing_ , Okuni! We had to fall back." Shaking her head, Setsuna finished, "As well as that, Hatsuko had sustained heavy wounds. Yoko and Aina stayed back to reinforce the outer gate, and the rest of us retreated to the safety of the castle. As for the demon that escaped... it clearly recovered its strength faster than we had thought possible. To tear open its own portal over Violight - well, you saw for yourself the result of that."

The astonishment Okuni felt when Setsuna was finished quickly became anger. "And Yoko still didn't want me to fight? Maybe I couldn't have tipped the scales, but I could have at least _helped_! What if I had been attacked last night? Am I that expendable?"

"All points that Tsukiyama and I argued," Setsuna interjected. "Okuni, I'm on your side. You have every right to be upset. I'm telling you this because I don't care what Yoko will do once she finds out I have. If there's been an attack in Valora as well, we can't afford to keep you in the dark."

Okuni bit her lip, shifting uncomfortably. Although she felt trepidation as to what the answer to her next question could be, she nonetheless asked, "So what's stopping Violight from happening again? If this demon is that powerful, why not just repeat that attack on Valora? How do we know some other kingdom won't be next?"

"That's actually just about the only silver lining," Setsuna sighed. "The boundaries between the human and spirit realms are reinforced with magic that makes it extremely difficult to force through them without a two-way connection. This demon was only able to escape with the help of someone on your side, and once it was in Violight, it would have taken an incredible amount of power to force its own gateway open. It's going to have been greatly drained from it."

"Alright," Okuni began. "But do we know how quickly it recovers? What's preventing it from just opening portals all over Ransei before we can seal it away for good?"

"You didn't let me finish," Setsuna said with a small smile."It's true that the Violight attack allowed a fair amount of demons into Ransei. But nothing short of the power of a god could tear multiple gateways open at once. It may have been some centuries since I called your Ransei home, but I don't recall anything capable of granting that kind of power simply up for the taking."

"Well, the Legendary Pokemon did share its power with Lady Rei atop Infinite Tower," Okuni recalled. "But Lady Rei emphasized how it told her that it could only happen once, and that after that battle she would no longer be able to access it." Remembering a detail from her earlier conversation with Hoshiko, Okuni remarked, "In fact, stories of the Legendary Pokemon bestowing its power onto warriors it deems worthy can be found all throughout Ransei's history. But even if it were to descend twice in one lifetime, I doubt it would be to give that power to a destruction-hungry demon."

"Isn't that reassuring?" Setsuna bitterly laughed. Meeting Okuni's eyes, her face fell. "Okuni, what's your plan from here? I can do my best to keep you informed from the spirit world, but ultimately, my time in your Ransei ended when you took up my duties. The laws of the spirit world dictate that unless it is directly attacked once more, the former shinigami will not be able to engage this demon again. It's one thing for me to communicate with you, but in the human realm, it's difficult for me to interact with anything that does not have strong ties to the spirit realm. Unless this demon sets its sights on the shinigami, it will fall to the seventeen kingdoms to defeat it. Do you believe that could be done?"

"Yes, I do," Okuni affirmed. "Especially once word of what happened in Violight and Valora gets out."

Rising, she finished, "And as for what I plan to do, first, I'm going back to Spectra."

* * *

By the time Okuni returned, Ina had been unsuccessfully attempting to strike up a tentative conversation with Hoshiko. Try as Ina might, the Wailord in the room regarding what Hoshiko could have possibly done to warrant Ina's home being attacked over her wasn't an easy one to overcome. And since Hoshiko didn't have any Pokemon with her for Ina to talk about, all that was really left to her was...

"Lovely weather out there, isn't it?" Ina mentally groaned as a thunderclap outside immediately followed, and even Prinplup gave her a disbelieving look. _"The weather, Ina? You can do better than that!"_

Hoshiko, on the other hand, didn't seem to be bothered. "Well, it seems in spite of the storm, the blimp is still going to be landing on schedule."

Fortunately for Ina, Okuni and her Pokemon rejoined them right as Ina was beginning to think she couldn't possibly do this.

"Is everything alright, Okuni?" Hoshiko asked. "You took your time."

Okuni nodded. "Yes, there were just a few things I needed to discuss with the pilot." Ina couldn't help but notice the slight edge to Okuni's voice, but maybe that was just the last of the adrenaline from Valora.

The shrine maiden let out a breath. "Alright, we'll be touching down in Spectra soon. Once we're inside the castle, I'll inform Lady No about what's happened, and you two can settle in and contact whomever you like."

 _"That will certainly be an interesting letter to write,"_ Ina thought. _"Dear Father and Lord Ieyasu, don't worry, I'm not dead. Instead, I'm in Spectra with its junior warlord because it's the only place we'll be safe from the demon assassins that are after our heads now. No idea when I'll be back. Love, Ina."_

The continuing sound of Okuni's voice brought Ina's attention back to her. "Let's see... you probably shouldn't leave your rooms once it gets dark, since the ghosts do like to play pranks on people who have never stayed in the castle before. Oh, and despite what you may have heard, I can confirm that Lady No does not bathe in the blood of her victims to keep herself eternally young and beautiful." Given Okuni's overly casual delivery, she had clearly given this speech before.

The roar of the engine began to grow louder, and Ina's stomach lurched as they began to descend. "Are we landing already?"

Okuni nodded. "By blimp, the trip from Valora to Spectra isn't even two hours. The pilot was able to take it faster too since we're the only passengers." Flashing a smirk at Ina, she added on, "Even in spite of this not-so-lovely weather."

In spite of herself, Ina laughed. "You heard?"

"Oh yes," Okuni giggled. "Don't worry, I won't hold it against you."

They set about collecting their belongings, and as Ina retrieved her coinpurse from atop a stack of crates, she suddenly felt a rush of sadness. She had left Valora's castle just hours earlier with her mother's bow under her arm, and for all she knew it had since been burned or blown up. Quagsire must have felt her grief down their link, because it came over and gave her a reassuring nudge with its head.

"Thank you," Ina murmured to the Ground Pokemon. "I just don't want it to have met its end like that."

If either Okuni or Hoshiko overheard, they were kind enough to not say anything. The next few minutes passed in relative silence until they felt the _thud_ of the blimp touching down. The exit ramp unfolded, and together the unlikely companions stepped out onto Spectra's airfield.

Ina hadn't traveled to many other kingdoms - only Nixtorm, and Dragnor once when Lord Ieyasu had sworn fealty to Lord Nobunaga. To her disappointment, her first impression of Spectra was... rather underwhelming. Although, the sheets of rain currently pouring down around them probably had something to do with that.

"Wonderful," Okuni muttered. "We'll have to make a run for it."

"I'm sorry?" Ina gaped. "I can't even make out the end of the airfield! We're more likely to drown out in that deluge than find our way to the castle!" On the other side of Okuni, similar grievances were mirrored upon Hoshiko's face.

"Well, the rain clearly won't be letting up anytime soon," Okuni remarked. "Unless you'd rather wait here all night." With that, she pulled up the hood of her cloak and gestured for Ina and Hoshiko to do the same.

 _"I can't believe this,"_ Ina thought incredulously, but she followed Okuni's lead. Bracing herself, she joined hands with Okuni and allowed herself to be led into the storm.

Their cloaks succeeded at keeping them dry for all of five seconds. As the rain pelted her face, Ina's senses gradually narrowed to nothing more than the feel of Okuni's hand in hers. Light showers like the one that had been hovering over Valora earlier were one thing. When the ocean might as well have been pouring from the sky, that was quite another matter. Ina had only bad memories associated with those storms.

Okuni squeezed Ina's hand abruptly, and Ina could just barely make out Okuni mouthing for them to stop. A moment passed, and Ina was about to ask what they were standing like statues in the middle of a downpour for when two columns of eerie blue flames erupted before them, illuminating a path. Even over the sounds of rain and thunder, Ina could hear Prinplup's startled squawk.

They started running again, and the moment they were beneath the threshold of the castle, the flames snapped out. Peering out from under the awning, Ina couldn't even make out the castle gates they must have passed through for all the rain.

Okuni cleared her throat from behind her, and Ina turned to see the castle doors opening. In that moment, she happily forgot every horror story she had ever heard about Spectra when she saw the warm, golden light emanating from the entry hall. Ina and Hoshiko barely had time to cast their sodden cloaks aside before Okuni steered them towards the throne room.

"Don't worry, your things will be taken care of," Okuni said before Ina could raise an objection. The entry hall of Spectra's castle was not overly-furnished, but Ina was willing to guess that the vases and sculptures that were on display were likely old heirlooms. One wall scroll that did catch her eye hung by the only visible set of stairs, a portrait of a dark-haired women with a Chandelure at her side.

Okuni led them to a pair of dark wooden doors inlaid with amethyst carvings of butterflies, which she knocked upon before opening. "My lady?" she called. "My apologies if I'm interrupting something."

If Ina's first impression of Spectra had been less than what she'd expected, her first impression of its infamous warlord certainly made up for it. Catching glimpses of Lady No from afar was different from being directly in her presence; feeling the aura of complete dominance radiating from every inch of her body. From her dark hair piled atop her head to the deep purple yukata cut to showcase her sensuous figure, everything about Lady No's appearance was tailored to suggest she was someone accustomed to being in control. Curling her garnet-painted lips in a half-smile at the sight of Okuni, Lady No let out a soft laugh that simultaneously captivated Ina and sent chills down her spine.

"Nothing at all, Okuni," she remarked, remaining seated on her throne. "Although you are back much earlier than I had expected. And I see you've brought us some guests."

Okuni was clearly more accustomed to whatever effect of Lady No's that Ina was currently under, because she stepped forward and gestured to both girls. "This is Lord Tadakatsu's daughter, Ina. We ran into a bit of trouble in Valora, and I'm afraid she got dragged along for the ride."

Lady No arched an eyebrow. "I'm assuming 'we' refers to yourself and this priestess?"

Surprisingly, Hoshiko didn't shrink under Lady No's scrutiny. Bowing, she said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, my lady. Okuni helped me out of a spot of trouble on the road, and spoke quite highly of you when we traveled together afterwards."

"Did she now?" Lady No murmured, and Ina could have sworn she saw a hint of a blush creeping up Okuni's neck.

"If we're through with introductions, there are several matters I need to speak with you about, my lady," Okuni said, a touch more brusquely than before.

"Of course," Lady No responded. "Why don't you show our guests to their rooms, and then report to my own. Clearly there is much we need to discuss."

Upon exiting the throne room, Ina felt as though she had been lifted from some deep trance. Okuni took one look at her face and sighed apologetically. "You always remember your first time meeting Lady No. If you speak to her again while you're here, it will get easier."

Okuni led them up several flights of stairs, stopping on the fourth floor. "Both of your rooms are next to mine, so if any spirits try anything tonight, don't be afraid to shout."

The shrine maiden stopped all of a sudden, looking up. Her voice gaining an edge, she called, "Although that's not going to have to happen, is it?"

Ina gasped as a gang of Haunters and Gastlys melted out of the shadows. Okuni stared down the largest of the Haunters, and they seemed to reach an unspoken agreement. The Ghost Pokemon vanished just as soundlessly as they had appeared, and Ina found herself wondering just what she had gotten herself into.

"Alright, they shouldn't bother either of you," Okuni asserted. She looked back at Ina and Hoshiko and suddenly burst out laughing. "Sorry, sorry! You're both just white as sheets! It never gets old."

With that, she showed Ina into a room surprisingly similar to her one back in Valora. "Again, I'm just two rooms over," Okuni said. A wicked grin crossed her face, and she whispered, "Enjoy your stay." Closing the door, she left Ina and her Pokemon to settle in for the night - although Ina could have sworn she heard a chuckle from the other side of the door. Turning, Ina was only vaguely surprised to see her cloak and bag already at the foot of the bed.

Looking down at Quagsire and Prinplup, Ina sighed. _"Maybe we should have just taken our chances with the demons..."_


	6. Chapter 6

_**Chapter 5**_

 _Perhaps the only person in Ransei who could walk unannounced into Kenshin's chambers without immediately being struck down was Aya. Since their childhood, they had never seen reason to keep secrets from each other, and in the sixteen years Kenshin had ruled as Illusio's warlord, no decision had ever been made before he and Aya discussed it together._

 _Aya was not the ruler of Illusio. Their late father had made that quite clear. But she could claim without sounding inflated that Kenshin would never move forward without consulting her judgement first._

 _Tonight, Aya was greeted by Gallade, who nodded at her before turning to fetch its partner. Aya called to a servant in the hall for tea to be brought up, then settled for restlessly pacing the main chamber until Kenshin emerged from his room._ _He locked eyes with her, and nothing more needed to be said._

 _"A vision?"_

 _"I fear so," Aya replied._ _"And this one came to me when I was awake."_

 _Kenshin's eyes narrowed, and he motioned for her to continue. Aya described the events that had unfolded on the rooftop that afternoon, leaving no detail out._

 _"The castle was Violight, I'm sure of it," Aya finished. At the sight of Kenshin's expression, her heart sank. "Tell me I'm wrong."_

 _A servant knocked on the door, and Kenshin crossed the room to take the tea tray and hand a cup to Aya before continuing. "An hour ago, I received word from Violight. It appears they were attacked by a devastating force earlier today." He left the final part unsaid, but Aya knew what he was implying._ "The same time as your vision."

 _"It's been years since the last one," Aya choked out, struggling to remain calm. Her hands were shaking, and she had to rest her teacup on the table. "I had hoped... Well, I suppose that was wishful thinking."_

 _"Indeed," Kenshin nodded. He finished the last dregs of tea in his cup before continuing. "There's no way to know how many other kingdoms have received Violight's distress call, but from what I have heard thus far, the situation is grave. Half the castle was destroyed, dozens of warriors were killed, and I have yet to hear from Lady Ginchiyo, which I can only assume means she was too wounded to send the message herself."_

 _Staring into the bottom of her cup, Aya contemplated this new information._

 _"_ _Is Illusio going to send aid?" she finally asked, tracing one of the flowers carved into the stone with her fingernail._

 _"I was hoping you would ask," Kenshin replied. "Unless you wish otherwise, I would like for you to be on the blimp flying out tomorrow morning." He paused, eyes glancing back to the door. Seemingly satisfied that no servant was eavesdropping in the hall, he continued. "Of course, if_ you _were to go to Violight, sister, it wouldn't be to simply supervise a supply delivery."_

 _Edging closer, Aya already understood what Kenshin was asking of her. "You want me to investigate."_

 _"In a word," her brother confirmed. "Once this becomes public knowledge, there are going to be innumerable rumors as to what might have caused such a disaster. I need someone who is capable of finding the truth, and someone I know will not allow fear to cloud their judgement. The knowledge I possess so far does not bode well with me. If nothing else, prove my suspicions wrong."_

 _The moonlight streaming into the room cast beams of silver across Kenshin's face, and Aya was struck by how hardened it had grown. Many days now, she had to remind herself that Kenshin was her younger brother. The task of protecting Illusio's neutrality during the final years of the war had left him looking old enough to be their father. Not for the first time, a sense of grief washed over her._ "His greatest burden is one we will never share."

 _"Of course I will do all within my power," Aya affirmed, bowing her head. Kenshin returned the gesture, a sign of utmost respect they could share only in private._

 _As Aya stood to leave, a thought took hold. Turning back to Kenshin, she added, "I do have one request. Allow me to bring Kanetsugu along. I have striven to impress the values that Illusio holds dear upon him. Perhaps to begin the next stage of his training, he must witness what happens when enemies who do not believe in those values exist."_

 _"A harsh lesson, but one of the most important for a true warrior to learn," Kenshin intoned. "I will see to it he is notified before your departure. He will meet you on the airfield."_

 _"Let us hope for a better tomorrow, then," Aya said. Before leaving, she turned back and matched stares with her brother one final time._

 _"Kenshin."_

 _"Aya."_

 _No more needed to be said._

* * *

Aya was snapped back into the present as the weak afternoon sunlight was blotted out by the blimp preparing to touch down on the airfield. Aya raised the hood of her kimono as the wind from the propellers began to pull at her hair. Froslass hovered at her side, but Beartic would be staying behind. As much as Aya disliked being separated from one of her partners, Beartic was simply too ill-suited to air travel.

As the boarding ramp unfolded from the blimp's deep red hull, Aya glanced to her side where Kanetsugu and Kadabra stood, still visibly flushed. Not five minutes earlier, they had come tearing out of the castle like the armies of hell were at their heels. Apparently, Kenshin had truly meant that Kanetsugu would not be notified of his new assignment until he woke up - roughly twenty minutes before their blimp was scheduled to take off. It had taken all of Aya's self-discipline to not burst out laughing as her student had practically thrown himself at her feet with apologies.

They boarded with the first round of supplies, along with the two dozen warriors of the castle guard and their Pokemon selected to come along. While Aya and Kanetsugu would only be staying in Violight long enough to see the recovery effort get underway, these warriors would take up temporary residence in Violight's castle to help defend it in the event of a second attack.

About an hour after they were off the ground, and their traveling companions were spread throughout the passenger bay of the blimp, Aya felt it was safe to inform Kanetsugu of their separate mission. Even so, she purposely made sure they were seated close to the droning engines.

"Let's begin with the basics," Aya said, turning in her seat to face her student. "What were you informed of this morning?"

Kanetsugu sat alert, eyes bright with fervor. "My lady, I was told that I am to accompany you to Violight while Illusio offers our aid to them in this hour of need. We bring a light of righteousness to our allies that will surely banish whatever nefarious force committed this atrocious act!"

Smiling at Kanetsugu's earnestness, Aya nodded. "Yes, but that's not all. Simply put, Kenshin wouldn't be sending me if this were as straightforward an errand as that." She frowned, grappling with how she should deliver the revelation she and Kenshin had come to. _"Best to not bother sugarcoating it, I suppose."_

"Kenshin and I have reason to believe that the attack on Violight was not of human origin. While we will only be in Violight for a handful of days, our true goal is going to be investigating whether or not this is true - or hopefully, untrue. This is separate from the assignments given to your fellow warriors, and as such, they are not to be brought into this unless it is completely necessary. Is that all clear?"

This additional knowledge did seem to throw Kanetsugu off guard. "Beg pardon, my lady, but what do you mean by inhuman? Do you and Lord Kenshin suspect that whatever attacked Violight was from some other world?"

Aya grimaced. "All of what we know thus far certainly seems to dictate so. The initial message from Violight spoke of shadows pouring out of the sky, and normal weapons doing next to nothing against them. Kenshin and I are both familiar with a text in the library of Illusio's castle that tells of a similar incident, almost a thousand years ago. What's more, it explicitly refers to these enemies as demons that escaped into our world." She paused, raising her eyebrows. "Either that, or this was all an exceedingly bad joke of Lord Kotaro's."

Before Kanetsugu could respond, the blimp was jostled by a patch of turbulence. Such an event was normal enough, one could almost never fly into Violight without encountering some sort of rough patch. When the lights briefly flickered and Aya saw several stray snowflakes that could only have come from a startled Froslass scatter through the air, she remained calm (although several more unlucky passengers were thrown harshly against the walls of the cabin). She had been expecting as much once they entered Violight.

Once the blimp was settled, Aya softly cleared her throat to bring Kanetsugu's attention away from his similarly distressed Kadabra.

"Continuing on," she emphasized, though dropping her voice. "I delved further into research last night, and found some less delicate scrolls on the subject that I've brought along for reference. We can take a better look at them once we land, but for now-"

"My lady," Kanetsugu interjected. "Kadabra feels that something isn't-"

Narrowing her eyes, Aya quickly brought her finger to her lips, then shifted her hand to make the gesture appear as though she were pushing her hood back. It was thankfully enough for Kanetsugu to understand the message. "Wait until we're closer to the castle, unless we have no choice," she whispered, mouth barely moving.

Illusio's warriors were no longer alone, and Aya knew it. From the report given to her by Kenshin, she had been anticipating some sort of intrusion as soon as they crossed into Violight. The snowflakes had been a signal. As a Ghost Pokemon, Froslass could detect the presence of fellow spirits, and Kadabra's psychic powers would be able to pierce through any cloaking the intruders might be using. Aya had a suspicion the "turbulence" had in actuality been a side effect of their blimp being boarded.

The trick now was seeing whether or not they could wait the intruders out. If a fight was initiated, they would all be stranded thousands of feet in the air, still roughly half an hour from Violight's castle, in the company of an unknown number of enemies. But if any member of Aya's delegation was attacked, they would have no choice. Aya had to fight the urge to reach for the naginata resting at her feet, settling for matching her wavelength with Froslass'. At least if the latter scenario did occur, they would be the first ones ready to fight back.

As the minutes ticked on though, Aya could feel a heightening tension throughout the cabin. Even if the other warriors didn't know its nature, they sensed a threat, and Aya could only hope none of them did anything brash. She made paper-thin conversation with Kanetsugu, words serving no purpose other than to try to calm them all. Finally, after the longest hour of her life, she glimpsed out the window and saw their descent through the clouds beginning.

Naturally, that was when everything went to hell.

A cry of pain rose from the far end of the cabin, and a spray of blood flew through the air. One warrior collapsed, clutching his now mutilated arm as his Chimecho hovered around him, prepared to attack. All throughout the compartment, blurry black shapes began to materialize out of thin air. Aya counted over a dozen in total.

 _"Froslass, go!"_ she commanded, and snow met shadow as the ice Pokemon launched into battle. Following that, the cabin exploded into chaos.

"Fight in pairs!" Aya shouted above the mayhem. Catching Kanetsugu's eyes, she dictated, "The top priority is making sure nothing reaches the pilot! If we can hold them off until we're on the ground, he can fetch reinforcements from the castle!" Kanetsugu nodded, and Aya turned her focus back to Froslass.

Grasping the smooth hilt of her naginata in her hands, Aya gave it a swift twirl before joining her partner, the two of them weaving around blows from their opponent and returning them in double. Aya took a small graze to her side, but a quick inspection after the demon went down showed it was nothing impeding.

Despite the fact that the demons were outnumbered two to one, they were clearly resilient fighters. The scrolls that Aya had studied suggested that it was near impossible for a single warrior to bring one down, and that theory seemed to be holding true. When the first demon before them fell, and Aya and Froslass moved on to the next, relieving a young woman and her Persian long enough for them to catch their breath. They rejoined the battle quickly enough, and four against one weren't odds that treated even a demon well. "Much appreciated, Lady Aya!" the woman called as Aya and Froslass moved deeper into the fray.

Doing another count, Aya saw they were now down to eight enemies, although three more warriors had also been incapacitated. Aya's attention was brought to the largest demon, pressing Kanetsugu and Kadabra against the wall. By this point, Aya and Froslass were practically one being, sharing the raw adrenaline of battle and perfectly in sync with each other. Aya brought her staff down hard on the demon's back while Froslass blasted it with Icy Wind. "Finish it, Kanetsugu!" Aya ordered.

Kanetsugu and Kadabra locked eyes, and the star on Kadabra's forehead began to glow. As psychic energy overpowered the weakened demon, its form flickered as it let out a bone-chilling screech. Kanetsugu roared and drove his sword directly into its chest. The outburst of energy let loose by the demon's death throes shattered the blade, but its job had been done. A new one would have to be found for Kanetsugu though, Aya noted, and preferably made of higher quality steel. The demon evaporated, and Aya felt a moment of pride before joining the next warrior in need of help.

Two more pained shouts sounded from somewhere near her, but Aya forced herself not to be distracted from the foes immediately before her. Only when Froslass sent a warning cry down their link did Aya whirl around and lock weapons with a demon that had been about to sink a wicked-looking dagger into her spine. They stood frozen for a moment, neither yielding, until Froslass created a layer of ice beneath the demon's feet. Aya brought her naginata upwards and knocked the demon to the floor, then dispatched it with a clean stab through the gut.

Looking up, she saw three pairs of warrior and Pokemon making work of the last demon in the room. Her eyes darted to the door leading out to the hall, where sure enough, the final demon was making a break for the pilot cabin.

 _"Not so fast."_ Aya sprinted forward, driving her naginata into the floor to give herself extra momentum as she vaulted towards the demon. The heels of her boots slammed into its leg, and it dropped to one knee before whirling to face her.

Its face parted in a nightmarish smile, and Aya reared back as it raised its clawed hand. Even so, it managed to slice through the sleeve of her kimono, staining the white fabric red with blood. Aya gritted her teeth and switched her staff to her other hand, but the movement was unnecessary. The combined power of every warrior and their Pokemon still in condition to fight hit the demon at once, and it exploded into smoke. As if on cue, Aya felt the rumble of the blimp touching down.

Panting and clutching her arm, Aya turned back to assess the damage done to her soldiers. She counted three lying unresponsive on the floor, another nine or ten injured, and all looking rather shaken by what had just transpired.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Aya breathed out, her grip on her staff tightening. "Welcome to Violight."

* * *

Okuni had lived in Spectra long enough to grow accustomed to the castle's general, well, creepiness. That didn't change the fact that during storms like this one, it felt to what she considered a somewhat ridiculous degree like the setting of a horror story.

 _"I hope whoever was in charge of building this place is feeling good about themselves in the afterlife right now,"_ Okuni grumbled as a flash of lightning lit up the hallway, unnecessarily adding to the atmosphere. All in all, it was not the first impression she had hoped to leave on Ina and Hoshiko.

Still, Okuni had to chuckle as she closed the door on Ina's bewildered, slightly terrified expression. _"She may not know it right now, but she's safer than I was during my first night here."_

Lady No generally didn't take the same precautions with the castle spirits that Okuni did when Spectra entertained visitors. On her own first night in the castle, Okuni had undergone an extremely unpleasant out-of-body experience that she later learned (to her horror) had been the same Haunter gang she had just confronted trying to decide whether or not to spirit her away. Only a timely intervention by Lady No had prevented Okuni's spirit from being permanently separated from her body.

Turning to Hoshiko, who at least seemed more at ease than Ina, Okuni said, "Your room is two doors down. You should be safe from any hauntings, possessions, spiriting aways and whatnot - although if you have any talismans on you, it might not hurt to wear one to bed anyways."

Hoshiko looked up at the corner where the Haunter gang had vanished.

"Do you think any of those Pokemon would want to link with me?" she asked, catching Okuni off guard. Okuni hadn't given much thought to it, but now she supposed Hoshiko probably was starting to feel self-conscious about not having a partner.

"Well, if you're feeling a resonance with Ghost Pokémon, you're in the right kingdom for it," Okuni replied. "I'm not sure about a Pokemon living in the castle, though. A lot of them have been here for a while, and have gotten attached to this place. Plus, since almost all of them were alive at some point, they have more personality to them than most other types of Pokemon. Finding a Ghost Type you're really compatible with, well, it gives the idea of having a partner for life a whole other meaning."

Tilting her head to the side, Hoshiko thought this over.

"I suppose you're right," she sighed. "There are other types of Pokemon in Spectra though, aren't there?"

"Definitely!" Okuni gave a firm nod. "Listen; if it's this important to you, we can make time while we're here to look for any potential partners for you."

As another clap of thunder sounded over them, Okuni winced. "Maybe in slightly more favorable weather, though."

Hoshiko laughed, her face lightening. "No objections there!" Turning towards her room, she waved her hand nonchalantly back at Okuni. "Don't worry about me, I can settle in on my own. Don't you have to speak with Lady No?"

At this reminder, a sense of discomfort settled over Okuni; despite what she had told Ina earlier, whatever aura that surrounded Lady No had been affecting Okuni as well in the throne room. Maybe it was a result of her having been away, even if only for a few days. Whatever it was, Okuni was going to have to try harder than usual to not completely fall into Lady No's thrall.

"Indeed I do," Okuni said. "If you're sure you'll be fine..."

"I'm not too concerned," Hoshiko remarked. "As long as I have my diadem, I'll be alright."

Now that Hoshiko mentioned it, Okuni was struck by the realization that when they had been on the road, Hoshiko had never removed her headpiece before settling down for the night. _"Maybe it's a priestess thing,"_ Okuni guessed, although she had to imagine that gold circlet couldn't be too comfortable to sleep in.

"If you're sure, then good night!" She waved as Hoshiko closed the door to her room before walking to the end of the corridor. "My lady, it's Okuni," she called.

"I was beginning to wonder what was keeping you," came the response. Okuni took that as an invitation and slid open the door. Almost immediately, Lady No asked, "How aware are you of the current situation in Violight? I'd rather not waste time repeating old information."

Okuni hadn't been expecting a welcome back party, but this reception was short, even for Lady No. Tentatively lowering herself onto a violet pillow, Okuni settled for, "As much as I would assume you know, my lady."

"Good," Lady No sighed. "Normally, I would be a touch more skeptical by the contents of such a distress call - an army of demons appearing from the sky? I assume they were accompanied by flying Miltanks? - but just this once, I have reason to believe it contains substance." As she said this, Lady No was drumming her fingernails against her thigh. It wasn't Okuni's imagination; the Ghost warlord was definitely on edge tonight. Okuni only had to wonder why for a moment before she remembered the time of year.

The anniversary of Lady No's reclamation of her title as warlord was approaching. Nearly six years ago, Lady No had been Okuni's physical age when she and Lord Nobunaga (although he hadn't been lord of anything then) had raised a coup against Lady No's aunt, who had seen Lady No's mother killed and usurped the throne of Spectra in Lady No's childhood. If the story Okuni had heard was true, Lady No had struck her aunt down in this very room. With her dying breath, Lady No's aunt had laid a curse on her, that her aunt's spirit would return to haunt her every year on what should be the celebration of Lady No's greatest triumph.

Recalling the souls she had collected in the aftermath of that night, Okuni considered herself fortunate to have been spared that one. Not every soul was worthy of a personal escort into the afterlife, a system Okuni considered for the better. Otherwise, she doubted she would ever receive a moment's rest.

 _"Let's not acknowledge it for now and see what happens,"_ Okuni decided. "What about Lord Nobunaga and Lord Mitsuhide? Are they aware yet?"

"Nobunaga certainly is," Lady No responded, her face betraying irritation as more lightning flashed outside. "I couldn't say the same for Mitsuhide, as neither of us have heard from him yet. That does remind me though; you owe me an explanation for why you're back so early, and with one of Lord Ieyasu's lieutenants in tow."

Ignoring the discomfort that always rose within her when Lord Nobunaga's name entered their conversations (Okuni knew that Lady No's alliance with Dragnor was a valuable one, but Lord Nobunaga's methods had never sat entirely well with her), Okuni turned her focus back to the afternoon's events. "Hoshiko and I were in Valora's market when we crossed paths with Ina. We struck up a conversation, then suddenly there was an explosion, and about a dozen demons came flooding out of the wreckage. I didn't mean for Ina to get caught up in it, but they saw her with us, and Hoshiko seemed to be their target. I couldn't risk sending Ina back to the castle after that."

"What makes you believe the priestess was the one they wanted? Wouldn't Ina, or yourself, be more valuable?" Lady No interjected.

Pausing, Okuni took in a breath before confiding her theory. "Originally, Hoshiko and I had planned to head directly for the Valora temple. Once we reached the city though, neither of us wanted to part ways just yet, so we decided to do some sightseeing at the market. The fact that the demons initially targeted the temple leads me to believe that they expected her to already be there. Once they realized she wasn't, I'm sure the market would have seemed like the next best option. Plus, once they were in the market, they started targeting people indiscriminately until they caught sight of the three of us. Then they became determined to hunt us down."

Lady No raised her eyebrows when Okuni was finished. "So what you're telling me is you don't know why they wanted the priestess, yet you brought her and another high-profile target into the heart of Spectra? 'Reckless' isn't a term I normally associate with you, Okuni, but this goes beyond even that. Have you planned at all what you intend to do from this point?"

Okuni winced. It was a fair point (although she struggled to not retort back that she hadn't been graced with much time to think her plan through). In the end, the only argument she had was, "If we sent them back now, and they were put in greater danger because of it, the blame for whatever befell them would be directed at us. Hoshiko is... odd at times, but I have a feeling it would be a bad idea to just abandon her. And if anything happened to Ina because we refused her protection, that would definitely sour our relations with Valora."

Lady No closed her eyes and thought it over. After a moment, she decided (although not without a hint of sarcasm), "Then it's extremely fortunate you've brought them to the only castle in Ransei that's even remotely protected against spirits." Before Okuni could feel too excited over her victory, Lady No added on, "But I expect you to find out more about the priestess. And make sure neither of them go exploring in places they don't belong."

"Of course, my lady!" Okuni bowed her head, relief flooding through her. "If there are no more attacks within the next few days, we can send them on their way."

With the discussion at an end, both women stood to prepare for bed. However, as Lady No turned, hints of whatever perfume she had been wearing in the throne room earlier hit Okuni in full force. Before Okuni could think, the scent of magnolias, lemon, and something more she couldn't identify invaded her senses; all just as intoxicating as the woman who wore them. Okuni couldn't help it, she gasped.

Lady No looked back, hints of a quizzical smile forming on her face. "Is there something else on your mind, Okuni?"

Furious with herself for being caught off guard so easily, Okuni's ears registered the sound of thunder outside, bringing her senses back to reality. "No, my lady, not at all. That last thunderclap was just... louder than I expected." Not her best lie, but it had been a long day.

She couldn't tell whether or not Lady No had bought her excuse. She closed her eyes before responding, "Good night, Okuni."

Okuni had never heard Lady No use that tone of voice before. What was it? There was no underlying jab, but Okuni had been in her service for long enough to know that expecting complete honesty from Lady No was like expecting an upset Arbok not to strike. Shaking her head, Okuni repeated, "Good night, my lady," before exiting the room. She would likely never be able to guess what went on in Lady No's mind. She doubted even Lord Nobunaga completely understood.

When she stepped into her own room, the scent of magnolias still lingered in her mind, an unwelcome distraction amidst Okuni's flurry of thoughts. She was so caught up in her mental recap of the day, Okuni completely missed Setsuna until a flash of lightning illuminated the purple-haired spirit standing on the balcony. Okuni looked up, sighing. No sleep tonight either, it seemed.

Death waited for nobody, and there was always still work yet to do.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Chapter 6**_

Okuni held onto the man's hand for as long as she could, until all that was left in her palm was an emerald orb of light speckled with gold. He had been ready at the end; fulfilled with all he had done in his long life. These were the easiest spirits for Okuni to escort, and perhaps that was why she envied them. None of them ever entered the afterlife kicking and screaming, and would never have to know what it was like.

Sighing, Okuni released the warrior's spirit, watching it float gently upwards until Setsuna rejoined her.

"Where did you take me tonight?" Okuni asked, eyes still trained on the shrinking green light.

"I believe we're just outside Greenleaf," Setsuna responded. Okuni looked back at her, thinking for a moment before coming to a decision.

"You can leave me here. I'll get back to Spectra on my own." Setsuna looked puzzled, but didn't question whatever it was Okuni had in mind.

"If that is what you wish," she replied. Setsuna faded back into the folds of the spirit world, and Okuni was left alone in the night.

Not one to let an opportunity like this pass her by, Okuni turned her focus to her own destination - the extensive library of Greenleaf's castle. Closing her eyes, she envisioned the endless rows of ancient shelves, each marked by a statue of a different Pokemon.

Teleportation was a skill possessed by all shinigami, but Okuni rarely felt the need to use hers, and as such didn't have the most perfect aim. She materialized several feet off the ground, and would have likely impaled herself on a stone rendering of a Cresselia had she been just two feet to the left. She hit the wooden floor with a crash and several grumbled curses. Upon regaining her bearings, however, Okuni was pleased to see she was in the right place.

To her left and right, shelves housing all sorts of scrolls and books stretched on as far as Okuni's eyes could make out in the dim lamplight. Through the glass domed ceiling, the crescent moon was a sliver of silver in the black night sky, faintly offering the spacious room its illumination. Okuni massaged the area of her back that had absorbed most of the impact, racking her mind trying to remember how everything here was organized - until she heard a familiar voice call out, "Who's there?"

Turning, Okuni was greeted by the sight of Lord Motonari himself, with his Serperior coiled behind him. Motonari blinked for a moment at the sight of Okuni in her ceremonial garb, then let out a sigh and ran a hand through the back of his hair. "You've never really been one for sending word ahead of time, have you?"

Her friendship with Motonari was easily the strangest that Okuni had ever known. Motonari was different from most in that he had not only guessed Okuni's true identity from their very first meeting, he hadn't cared whatsoever. On the contrary, they had spent many nights in Greenleaf's library since going over the history of Ransei, with Okuni providing corrections for the records wherever inaccuracies occurred.

Okuni wasn't sure if this violated any kind of ancient shinigami law, but if any of her predecessors even knew about Motonari, they had never given her any grief for it. And unlike most humans, Motonari never pestered her for any information she wouldn't have known, such as the manner or time of his death. So whenever the opportunity arose, they would trade knowledge in the way other friends who hadn't seen each other recently might catch up over tea.

"At least I didn't knock a shelf over," Okuni replied as she brushed herself off.

"This time," Motonari laughed. "Don't misunderstand, I'm glad to see you. In fact, I'm grateful it's only you. With Greenleaf being one of Violight's neighbors, I've started wondering if we should prepare for the worst."

Wincing, Okuni said, "Actually, that's kind of why I'm here tonight. Although knowing you, I'm guessing you didn't wait for me before you started burning the midnight oil."

"Guilty as charged," Motonari shrugged. "Let me show you what I've found so far."

They walked past several more shelves before reaching what was normally a reading area, although tonight it was Motonari's base of operations. The surfaces of every table were strewn with what looked like the aftermath of a paper tornado, and Okuni let out a low whistle at the sight. "You really ransacked the archives this time, didn't you?"

Motonari shook his head, frustrated. "Serperior and I probably tore apart half the library looking for anything. But I think we finally found something worth reading into further. I only skimmed it before you arrived, but it looks like it goes back about a thousand years, so I'm not surprised we had to dig in the very back of the archives to find it."

Looking around at the clutter with dismay, he groaned, "Although now I can't quite remember which table I left it on..."

With a slightly weary-sounding cry, Serperior tossed its head and began weaving around several tables before snatching up a scroll with its tail.

"Thank you, Serperior," Motonari chuckled, patting the Grass Pokemon on the neck as he took the document. "I would probably get lost in here if I didn't have you with me."

Joining him in looking over the scroll, Okuni squinted down at the faded lettering.

"It's definitely seen better days," she assessed. "Would it be possible to get some more light on this?"

Motonari obliged, and Okuni set to work reading the text. After several minutes, she gasped and looked over at Motonari, who had begun the same process on a further page.

"I think we've found something big," Okuni began. She could feel Motonari looking over her shoulder as she ran her finger down the page.

"The pictures are more intact than the lettering in some places, so I had to piece together a few of the details on my own. But this is definitely an account of an attack on Ransei by 'an army composed of every denizen of hell, obliterating any force sent to impede their progress'."

"That's not exactly reassuring," Motonari said. "Anything in there about how to stop them?"

"That's where it gets interesting," Okuni replied. "Here's where I had to start making some inferences, but the woman in this picture is definitely some kind of priestess, and I'd be willing to wager she was an important one. She had a power that made her immune to attacks from any demon. In fact, it let her just obliterate them. The kingdoms led a final battle against the leader of the demons, and it looks like the priestess sacrificed herself to seal it away. She must have been one of the last true exorcists to have done something like that."

"That makes a great story, but where do we get someone like that?" Motonari asked. "You said it yourself, our mystery priestess was one of the _last_ real exorcists. It's been almost a thousand years since she died, and I doubt we have time to try and track down any potential descendants of hers to see if they can do whatever she could."

"I was starting to worry about that too," Okuni responded, eyes scanning back over the scroll. "But then I noticed this." She pointed to a portrait of the priestess that took up half the page. "See, in the background? Doesn't that building look familiar?"

Motonari's hand grasped his chin, eyes widening in recognition.

"Unbelievable," he murmured. "That's-"

"The palace of Illusio," Okuni finished. "Which can only mean one thing. She wasn't just a priestess, she was also a princess. And if she was royalty..."

"We can find out who she was with the castle genealogy records!" Motonari declared. "Ingenious!" The warlord and his partner Pokemon vanished back into the jungle of shelves for a moment, then emerged with a thick, dusty-looking tome.

"Obviously, it's not my first choice for casual reading," Motonari huffed as he dropped the text down on the table with an impressive _thud_. "But if we find the Illusio section and go back about a thousand years..." He thumbed through the yellowed pages, now muttering to himself. "No, too old. Too male. That whole branch is illegitimate. Aha! This might be a match!"

Okuni gently flattened the page, reading the information out loud.

"This looks right," she confirmed. "Mizukihime, daughter of the warlord of the time, died when she was around twenty-five years old. There's no cause of death listed, but it wasn't common to put that on ancestry records for another few centuries. So unless there's another silver-haired princess of Illusio who died young a thousand years ago, I'd say she's our best guess." Okuni frowned, trying to think. "Something is bothering me, though. I know I've heard that name before."

"A spirit, maybe?" Motonari suggested offhandedly. "I'll keep looking into this Mizukihime. She's probably mentioned in other historical texts."

 _"Spirit..."_ Okuni thought. Then the memory hit her.

 _It had been the first time Okuni was brought before the assembled shinigami of Ransei, immediately after the position had been passed on to her. Setsuna accepted her duty to train Okuni without fuss, but one former shinigami had protested Yoko's choice of Okuni._

 _Silvery-white hair, styled elaborately around a moonstone hairpin. Lavender eyes that burned with a challenge. The woman carried herself with dignity, and was unfazed by the significant height advantage Yoko held over her. "This girl has been through enough, Yoko," she declared. "The pact you have forced her into is a cruel one."_

 _"Nonetheless, she accepted it. It is not your place to decide her fate, nor challenge my decisions,_ Mizuki _," Yoko spat back._

 _A look of fury crossed the other woman's face, and Okuni expected her to continue arguing. However, she sighed, allowing composure to spread back across her features before speaking again._

 _"Of course, Yoko." She bowed her head stiffly, as though the gesture was one she was unused to. "Although I would remind you that my name has been Tsukiyama for some time now, and I would appreciate it if you referred to me as thus."_

"That can't be. It's too perfect," Okuni whispered, becoming aware of her surroundings again.

"What's too perfect?" Motonari called, sifting through the stack of books resting on another table. "If you've figured something out, don't keep it a secret."

Okuni was still gaping as the pieces fell into place.

"I - I know who Mizukihime is," she stammered, stunned. "I've known who she is for over a hundred and fifty years."

* * *

Ina lay still in bed, staring up at the ceiling of her room. It had been hours since Okuni had left her, but sleep was still nowhere to be found. She sat up, and her eyes automatically found the corner of the room where her partners had fallen asleep. Evidently they weren't facing Ina's insomnia - in fact, she had always had a sneaking suspicion that Prinplup loved stormy nights just as much as Ina hated them.

Softly groaning, Ina let her head fall back onto the pillow, and the guilt that had been building up all day finally washed over her. At this moment, her father and Lord Ieyasu were likely worried sick, and the last thing Ina wanted on their minds given the current situation was her whereabouts. She had no paper or ink to write to them though; her only possessions currently with her were her cloak and the small coinpurse that she had brought to the market that morning. Her mother's bow was probably crushed under a pile of rubble, if it had even survived the initial explosions.

 _"Well done, Ina,"_ she thought bitterly as hot tears of shame welled in her eyes. _"The one thing your mother left behind for you, and you couldn't even keep it safe for a full hour."_

The truth was, there simply wasn't much that Ina could remember about her mother. Asahi Honda had been killed almost ten years ago, and while Ina had grown up hearing plenty of secondhand tales about her mother's might in battle, she could never bring herself to reopen the wounds that Asahi's death had left in Tadakatsu by asking about her - perhaps that was why he had kept his wife's bow locked up in the armory for so many years. And while Ina knew that Asahi had originally come from a village of warriors in Fontaine, Ina had never actually met any of her mother's relatives.

Until today, Ina had viewed Quagsire as the one true tie to Asahi that she could claim. The Ground Pokemon had been her mother's partner for longer than Ina had been alive. The day after the funeral, it had come to Ina's side and hadn't left since, even after she met Prinplup. They had never been able to forge a perfect link, but that they had been able to form a link at all was what mattered more from Ina's perspective.

Now that she was alone with her thoughts, Ina realized that she had never given much thought to the fate of her mother's prized bow before now. It was one of the clearest details Ina remembered about Asahi, though - she had almost always worn her armor, with the silver bow slung across her back, and had tied her hair up in the same style Ina kept hers in now. At the funeral, Ina hadn't recognized her mother's body at first, dressed in a snowy-white kimono with her dark hair hanging past her waist.

 _"I suppose I always assumed the bow was buried with her,"_ Ina surmised.

Her stream of memories was interrupted by the sudden sound of a door opening, followed by the footsteps of someone clearly attempting to be silent, and failing miserably. Ina was instantly on alert, and had to restrain herself from storming into the hall right then and there. _"Remember the stories you've heard about this castle! It's probably a ghost who thinks you're easy pickings."_

She heard a hiss that sounded like a candle being lit, and then a feminine figure was softly silhouetted on the other side of the door to Ina's room. Ina remained cautious, but slowly stood and began to creep across the floor, grateful that the storm outside muffled her footsteps. There was no mistaking the long waves of hair flowing down the figure's back. It had to be that priestess Okuni was traveling with - Hoshiko, that was her name.

Or at least, a spirit impersonating Hoshiko for some reason, Ina reminded herself.

 _"How to make sure, though?"_ If it really was Hoshiko, Ina still felt entitled to answers concerning the question of why one priestess was worth sending half of Valora up in flames, and Ina could already tell there would be few opportunities to corner Hoshiko somewhere that Okuni wouldn't be able to cover for her. But if it was some shapeshifting castle spirit, Ina didn't feel like testing exactly how much protection Okuni had actually guaranteed her.

 _"Haunting, possession, being spirited away."_ Okuni's words from earlier were alarm bells clamoring through Ina's brain. She glanced back at where Quagsire and Prinplup still lay sound asleep. At the same moment, whoever was outside her room began to proceed down the hall towards the stairs.

Within the span of the next flash of lightning, Ina hesitated, then took a deep breath and opened the door to her room as far as she dared. Slowly peering out into the hall, she caught sight of Hoshiko standing at the top of the stairs, peering down into the flame of the candle in her hands. Despite it being well past the middle of the night, the white-haired girl still wore her priestess' robes.

 _"It's now or never, Ina. Find out why she's wandering a strange castle in the middle of the night and get some answers from her."_ Ina knew she was being foolish to leave her partners out of this. But in the time it would take to wake either of them, she would lose Hoshiko in the dark hallways of Spectra's castle. Clenching her fists, Ina grimaced, _"You deserve whatever happens to you for doing this,"_ but stepped out of her room.

Aside from another clap of thunder, nothing happened. No hordes of Ghost Pokemon descended upon her. Realizing she had been bracing herself for an attack, Ina let herself relax slightly and hurried forward. What had she been expecting, her mother's spirit to appear in front of her and pass judgement for her loss of the bow? Still, Ina eyed an iron candelabra standing beside the stairway and didn't hesitate in picking it up on her way down, testing its grip in her hands.

From then on, it was a matter of staying near enough to Hoshiko to keep track of the candle's glow, but far back enough so as not to alert her that she was being followed. From the amount of time Hoshiko spent canvassing each floor of the castle, it was clear to Ina that she was searching for something. Ina just couldn't fathom what that might be.

After what felt close to an hour, they finally reached the entrance hall. The dark wood and paintings had felt somewhat welcoming earlier when lit, but in the dark of night, the shadows cast on the walls by flashes of lightning sent chills running down Ina's spine. She decided to risk following Hoshiko a touch closer than before.

Now, Hoshiko was frozen close to the doors of the throne room, and Ina could see her shivering beneath her white robes. Ina's own eyes darted up to the shadowed ceiling, and she hefted the candelabra into a position she could use to cover her head if necessary. But Hoshiko gave a small shake of her head, and approached the doors to the throne room. She lightly touched one of the amethyst butterflies embedded in the wood, and the door swung inwards. Without hesitating, Hoshiko proceeded forward.

Ina had to run to slip inside the throne room before the door could swing closed, but Hoshiko was still fortunately facing away from her. She moved quicker now, finally seeming to have honed in on whatever she was searching for. Keeping to the shadows, Ina watched as Hoshiko moved onto the platform holding Lady No's throne. Hoshiko paused one final time before reaching out and determinedly running her free hand over the top and sides of the throne.

 _"What in the name of the Legendary Pokemon is she doing?"_ Ina's question was answered as Hoshiko's fingers closed over the impressively-sized amethyst that crowned the throne, wrenching it free with what looked like surprisingly little force. _"Unbelievable! She's a thief!"_

Enough was enough, Ina decided. Making sure to keep hold of her makeshift weapon, Ina stepped within view of Hoshiko.

"I think that's quite enough," she called, hoping her voice didn't betray the lingering fear still resting in her gut. "Does Okuni know you planned on stealing from Lady No?"

She heard Hoshiko's intake of breath, and the priestess swung around to face Ina as more lightning illuminated the throne room.

"What - what are you doing here?" Hoshiko stammered. Then a look of shock crossed her face, visible even in the dim candlelight. "Can it be - do you feel it too?"

"Feel what?" Ina cried out, her frustration building. "That you're lying about your intentions, and for all I know your entire identity? Cities aren't set aflame over priestesses! That market, _my home_ , was blown to bits today because of you, and you can't even be bothered to explain why! Is this whole priestess story just a ruse because it makes you seem trustworthy and innocent? How do I know you haven't been taking advantage of Okuni?"

Storming across the throne room until she was within a hand's breadth of Hoshiko, Ina hissed, "Is that why those things in the market wanted you? Because you took something from them too?"

To her credit, Hoshiko didn't waver, matching Ina's gaze with her own. They stayed locked in their silent battle of wills for what seemed an eternity, although it must have only been seconds. Finally, Hoshiko looked away, although Ina heard her murmur something indiscernable to herself.

At the same moment, a groan sounded from the wall behind the throne, and Ina watched in awe as a hidden door opened. A stone staircase that hadn't been there a moment before now lead belowground, and as Ina tried to make out what lay beyond the first few steps, a sudden feeling of dread overtook her. Something here was very wrong. She looked back at Hoshiko, who seemed unaffected. "You... is this what you meant?"

Hoshiko nodded. "From the moment I entered this castle, I could sense that something was out of place." She moved closer, and sympathy entered her eyes. "I don't blame you for wanting answers, Ina. But I'm afraid I can't give them to you."

Ina flinched as Hoshiko said her name, but slowly breathed out and straightened herself. "Do you plan on going down? Did you know this would happen?"

"Yes, and yes." The moment Hoshiko's foot touched the stone steps, they were illuminated with purple light coming from an unseen source.

"That seems like an invitation to me," she said, looking back at Ina. "You don't have to follow me if you don't want to."

"No, I do," Ina responded, and was surprised to find she meant it. Joining Hoshiko on the stairs, they made their way down side by side.

As they spiraled beneath the castle, the very air seemed to grow more sinister, and the hairs on the back of Ina's neck stood up. She felt the overwhelming sensation of being watched. _"You have been seen. Turn back,"_ she could almost hear the steps whispering.

Hoshiko's hand brushed against Ina's arm, and Ina started.

"Do you hear anything?" Hoshiko whispered.

Until now, all Ina had been able to register was the sound of her own blood rushing in her ears. Forcing herself to breathe, she pressed her hand to the wall to steady herself and gasped. A faint, but insistent _scritch-scritch_ seemed to be coming from further on ahead, as though something was trapped within the walls.

The stories she had heard of Lady No's coup filled Ina's head. Supposedly, Lady No had killed her usurper aunt. But what if that hadn't been the case? What if she had locked her down here, in some forgotten dungeon?

Imagining any sort of horrors that could be waiting for them, Ina and Hoshiko nevertheless reached the bottom of the staircase. Instinctively, Ina reached out and found Hoshiko's wrist. Hoshiko stiffened, but didn't draw back. Whatever mysteries surrounded the priestess, in this moment, Ina was glad neither of them were about to face whatever was around the corner alone.

Passing beneath a stone archway, they found themselves inside what could have passed for a mausoleum were it not for carvings on the walls where crypts would normally be. At least the mystery of what had been giving off the purple light was solved; it was emanating from the cracks in the stone floor. Moving closer to one of the walls, Ina dared to brush her fingers over some of the writing. She didn't recognize any of the characters, but Hoshiko seemed to.

"These are very old," Hoshiko muttered, bringing her candle closer to the shadowed portions of the wall. "It's the language of the spirit world. Not even most priestesses know how to read it, but its use was mostly confined to Spectra. The old exorcists wrote all of their rituals in it to avoid the knowledge falling into the wrong hands. After they died out, so did the majority of people who could decipher it."

Hoshiko brought her free hand up to her face, absentmindedly tapping her lips as she thought. "What possible function could a room such as this serve, especially when located beneath a castle?"

"I'm afraid that information is typically only privy to the matriarch of Spectra," came a voice from behind them. Ina whirled around, and her heart plunged into her stomach. _"Lady No!"_

Ina's mind ineffectively raced to come up with anything resembling a believable excuse for how she and Hoshiko had come to find themselves inside a secret room beneath Spectra's castle. Hoshiko, on the other hand, cut directly to the chase.

"I understand that most kingdoms have their secrets, my lady," Hoshiko replied, lifting her head. "But if I'm correct, I believe I would find that within this room, the walls between the human and spirit worlds have been eroded away to almost nothing. I could sense it even from the throne room. You must understand that as a priestess of Arceus, I couldn't allow that to go unchecked."

For a split second, Ina saw surprise cross over Lady No's face. Ina had to guess it wasn't often that she was pressed for information in such a forward manner by strange priestesses. Ina wondered if she might have to intervene for Hoshiko's safety, and even if that would be a wise decision.

But Lady No laughed instead, and the sound hung in the air like the final notes of a music box.

"My, you really aren't one for formalities, are you, my dear?" Walking to the center of the room, Lady No gave a small flick of her wrist in Hoshiko's direction. "Honestly, it's rather refreshing. It does get tiring after a few years, constantly being addressed with petrified terror."

Lady No's back was turned to them now, although it seemed as though she was fiddling with one of the sleeves of her robe. "Not even Okuni knows about this place, you know," she remarked conversationally. "She's been in my service for three years and has never given the slightest indication." Tilting her head, Lady No added on, "Although she is a very good actress, and I doubt she would question me about it as directly as you are."

By now, Ina was well beyond ready to return to her room and forget all of this. But she stayed rooted to the floor, curious despite her normally overriding sense of when she was completely in over her head.

Hoshiko's expression remained neutral, although her voice had gained a hardness that Ina wouldn't have associated with the priestess' small frame. "Okuni thinks very highly of you. She would try to seek an explanation on her own before believing the worst of you. But I'm not Okuni, and I'm going to ask you again - why was this room created?"

Lady No turned to face them, and to Ina's horror, a dagger made of some kind of black stone was now clutched in her hand. "Why do you think, priestess?" Lady No asked, nimble fingers toying with the blade. "Surely it bears some resemblance to the altars of the temples?"

Ina saw Hoshiko clench her fist, and now the priestess' control over her emotions began to slip.

"This is no altar," Hoshiko spat through gritted teeth. "This is a summoning circle."

Lady No smiled, cold and condescending. "And the coin drops."

She held the blade out flat in front of her, then brought it up to her open free hand. "Did you know, it used to be that the ritual any potential matriarch of Spectra had to undergo to prove her ability was the summoning of a demon?" she inquired conversationally. "Not only was she required to successfully summon the demon, she then also had to exorcise it, all without any help. After several potential women were killed, and even some of the successful ones were driven mad by the effort, the ritual was declared obsolete and the matriarchal bloodline was established."

Pausing, Lady No drew back her sleeve and pressed the tip of the blade to the pale skin of her forearm, just lightly enough so as not to draw blood.

"But the instructions for a slightly different ritual were still passed down," she noted. "Should there ever come a time when Spectra was in dire need of protection, if all other forms of defense had fallen and the matriarch feared for her life - she could summon a powerful demon, whose might could bring down an entire army. Theoretically, she would enter this room, use her blood to open the seal between worlds, and begin to chant in the tongue of spirits. If she were strong enough to bring whatever came forth under her control, she would be truly unstoppable. If not..." Lady No abruptly returned the dagger to her sleeve. "Well, let's just say it would be quite unpleasant."

Taking in Hoshiko's furious gaze, Lady No sighed. "As I said, it has been hundreds of years since the last time this room was properly used. There is nothing I can do about its being here, but I have never used it and do not plan to." Making her way back to the entrance in a sweep of violet silk, Lady No turned back and regarded them. "Unless you would like to spend the rest of the night down here, I would advise you to follow me back. Oh, and kindly replace that candelabra wherever you found it."

Relieved over seeming to have escaped Lady No's wrath, Ina quickly fell in behind her, although she still took care to leave several steps between them. Hoshiko hesitated, but relented after a moment and joined Ina. The storm outside still raged when they re-entered the throne room, but Ina was too dazed to pay it any mind now. They climbed to the fourth floor in silence, and upon reaching the door to her room, Ina barely remembered to bow to Lady No before going inside.

"My apologies, my lady," Ina said. "I swear I won't tell anyone what we saw." Lady No merely looked her over once and nodded. Ina took that as an invitation to exit, and gladly did so.

When she saw that Quagsire and Prinplup had barely moved, Ina felt a small prick of irritation, but reminded herself that it had been her decision to leave them behind. Returning to her bed, Ina shut her eyes, ready to let the events of this night fade to memory. But try as she might, that image of Hoshiko facing off against Lady No stayed with Ina even after she finally drifted off to troubled sleep.

In that moment of confrontation, Hoshiko had seemed a completely different person. How much more could she still be concealing?


	8. Chapter 8

_**Chapter 7**_

Ginchiyo's dreams were a muddled haze, caught somewhere between memories and creations of her mind.

She relived the battle with the demons on the hill several times, the golden shield that Luxray had formed around them more dazzling and cacophonous with each repeat. Towards the end, Ginchiyo's sword almost took on a life of its own, energy crackling through the blade and leaving it humming in her clenched fist. It felt as though she had a hurricane at her command, and the shadowy creatures fell before she even had to touch them.

But less welcome visions haunted Ginchiyo as well. Just as suddenly as she brought her sword down on the hilltop, she was back in the room where her father had spent his final hours. That day wasn't supposed to have ended as it did. There had been a border skirmish with Pugilis, nothing out of the ordinary. But Dosetsu Tachibana had insisted on facing Lord Yoshihiro himself, and regardless of whether the conflict had meant to turn fatal, Ginchiyo's father had returned with a wound in his chest so deep that his lung had collapsed.

Had it been seven years already? Ginchiyo heard the final words her father had spoken to her as clearly in her mind as though it had been yesterday - _"Protect the sword. Protect Violight."_ And then his voice had failed him, his heart soon afterwards.

Sparring with Muneshige. The feeling of pride as she watched Luxray evolve. The day of her coronation. Standing atop Infinite Tower alongside Lady Rei. All of these events cycled through Ginchiyo's mind, before she finally gave a great gasp and sprung up from a bed, blinking rapidly.

The first thing Ginchiyo saw was her sword resting against the wall, completely ordinary. She slowly brought her fingers to her forehead, feeling a layer of bandages beneath her hair. Looking down, Ginchiyo saw that her armor had been removed, leaving only the usual binding she wrapped around her chest. More bandages had been applied to her right wrist (not her preferred sword hand, at least), and if the throbbing coming from her right ankle was any indication, it was similarly wounded. _"Pain is good,"_ Ginchiyo reminded herself. _"Pain means the bone isn't broken."_ A sprain or dislocation would still be an annoyance, but the healing time would be much quicker.

"Lady Ginchiyo?" she heard a deep, feminine voice gently prompting. Turning as much of her body as she could, Ginchiyo was met with the realization that she wasn't alone. A familiar-looking, dark-haired woman in white was seated beside Ginchiyo's bed, a Froslass hovering just behind her.

"Lady Aya," Ginchiyo rasped through cracked lips. Wincing, she breathed in and hissed back out, "I could use something to drink."

Aya sighed, giving a short, humorless laugh. "That makes two of us." Standing, she made to call for a servant before pausing. "Would you like for me to inform anyone that you're awake?"

Shaking her head, Ginchiyo responded, "Let them find out soon enough. I need a few moments to... adjust."

"I understand," Aya nodded. "I'll leave you to it. Ah, and your Luxray should be somewhere nearby. It's been prowling outside the room ever since it woke up. It nearly electrocuted me the first time I came up to see you."

Gratitude for her partner's safety and loyalty washed over Ginchiyo, but she was still troubled. "How long was I asleep? What is the state of Violight? Have I been lying in the ruins of my own kingdom?"

After a moment's hesitation - Ginchiyo hoped she didn't sound too desperate - Aya responded, "Just over two days." Seeing Ginchiyo start, she quickly added on, "Which is quite impressive. I've seen lesser wounds knock warriors out for a week."

Sliding the door to the hall open, she looked back at Ginchiyo, smiling reassuredly. "I'll be back in a moment. Then I promise to properly fill you in."

Once alone with her agitation, Ginchiyo grappled with sorting out the last events she could remember. Yes, there had been the demon attack, but she couldn't shake the feeling that something more had occurred. It was as though someone had reached into her brain and plucked out whatever scene she was straining to recall. After several unsuccessful attempts to jog her memory, Ginchiyo reluctantly decided to let it rest for the time being and cast out her mind, seeking Luxray.

True to Aya's word, Ginchiyo found her partner's wavelength just outside in the hall. _"It's alright,"_ Ginchiyo sent down their bond, injecting as much determination into it as she could muster. _"I'm alive."_

The familiar ache to be out in the fray was already returning, as quickly as Ginchiyo's patience was depleting. By the time Aya returned with a tray of strong-smelling tea, Ginchiyo had already forced herself out of bed, bracing herself against the wall when her injured ankle tried to give out. Aya gave a small shake of her head at this, but Ginchiyo was too inflamed to care if the other woman disapproved.

"Why are you here?" Ginchiyo demanded as she wrestled herself into a yukata. "What is the condition of the castle? Have there been similar attacks throughout Ransei?"

Aya explained as she poured tea for the both of them. "A survivor sent out distress calls to the other kingdoms within the initial hours following the attack. Kenshin took it upon Illusio to send soldiers and supplies, and you must forgive me for wanting to see the aftermath myself. Once I was informed of your condition, I elected to stay until you awoke." Sliding a teacup towards Ginchiyo, Aya continued.

"The castle was compromised in the attack, but your remaining men were able to retake it with the assistance of Illusio's soldiers." Lowering her eyes, Aya remorsefully added, "Although not without fatalities. Since then, we've all been working to rebuild the damaged portions of the castle."

"How many fatalities?" Ginchiyo snapped, slamming her good hand onto the table. "I need to know how weakened our defenses are!"

"Counting those who fell in the initial attack, close to fifty," Aya said, to her credit meeting Ginchiyo's eyes as she delivered the news. "And I lost two of my men on the way in. Our blimp was boarded by a party of these demons shortly after we crossed into Violight. I fear the same may occur if any other kingdom attempts to send aid."

At this, a chill settled over Ginchiyo that owed nothing to the dreary November day outside.

"So many?" she asked, gripping the edge of the table.

"I wish that were the worst of it," Aya continued. "Yesterday, a messenger from Valora flew into Violight on their Pokemon, and was attacked like my men and I were. He succumbed to his wounds, but not before he delivered word that a similar incident had occurred in the heart of Valora. Half the city was blown to pieces, and Lord Tadakatsu's daughter is among those unaccounted for. Whatever this enemy is, their power is already growing."

Ginchiyo could sense the hopelessness threatening to creep into Aya's voice, an emotion both of them were desperately trying to fight. The memory of the morning before the attack surfaced suddenly, an unwelcome intruder. Ginchiyo had sat at this same table with Muneshige, berating him as usual, blissfully unaware that their world was about to be turned upside down. _"Muneshige!"_

"Where was I when you found me?" Ginchiyo said quickly, struggling to clamp down the panic storming inside her. "On top of the hill?"

"I believe so," Aya said, concern re-entering her expression. "You had already been brought to the hospital in the town when I arrived. What is it?"

"Was there anyone else with me?" Ginchiyo gasped, before breaking into a fit of coughing. Downing the rest of her tea, she barely allowed herself a moment to breathe before continuing. "A male warrior, with a Staraptor as his partner?"

Recognition lit Aya's eyes, and she nodded. "Your junior warlord, isn't that right?" She pursed her lips. "I'm afraid he suffered more severe wounds than you. He was still alive when last I checked on him, but his battle is not over just yet."

"I want to see him," Ginchiyo said automatically. "Is he awake?"

Aya winced at that. "In a sense. But the healers and their Pokemon can't remove all of the pain, and he took a very harsh beating."

"That doesn't matter. His pride will have to endure me seeing him wounded," Ginchiyo scoffed. "Where is he?"

Why did this matter to her so much? She wasn't certain of that answer, and didn't have the time or desire to search inward for one. But right now, though she wouldn't admit it, Ginchiyo needed something from before the attack to still be here afterwards.

Raising her eyebrows, Aya remarked, "Well, if absolutely nothing is going to stop you, I won't be the fool who stands in your way. If you can walk, I'll show you to him."

"Of course I can walk!" Ginchiyo snapped. "I don't need my surviving soldiers to see me being treated as though I may topple over at any moment."

As Ginchiyo stood, she could see Aya taking pains to keep her face neutral, though once the other woman was no longer facing Ginchiyo, she gave a small laugh of, "I'm sure they'll be relieved to know you're already returning to normal."

Crossing her arms, Ginchiyo couldn't help but smirk. "Were you expecting anything different, my lady?" Narrowing her eyes, she spat, "If these demons thought they could bring down the last Tachibana so easily, I pity them."

An old clan saying her father had once told her resurfaced in Ginchiyo's mind. _"Only a fool mistakes the eye of the hurricane for the end of the storm."_ Ginchiyo intended to bring the full wrath of the storm upon this enemy before facing defeat once more.

* * *

For the third time in the two days since her return to Spectra, Okuni awoke in the middle of the night and began preparing the ritual to invoke a shinigami.

"You know," she remarked to an observant Scolipede and Larvesta as she sifted through the contents of her trunk, "I generally try not to seem irritated as I go about my duties during the day."

Wrenching a small bundle of dark red incense out from underneath an old costume, Okuni groaned. "But I can't promise not to be upset if the last of this goes to waste tonight."

Okuni had bought the incense several years prior in Yaksha for far more than she generally liked to pay for anything, and had taken pains to charge each individual stick with energy that spirits tended to find attractive. She planned to burn it tonight since clearly her regular incense was not good enough for a certain royal shinigami.

When she had summoned Setsuna on the blimp, Okuni had been in a hurry, and had lacked the materials needed to properly anchor a spirit in the human realm. If she intended to get the answers that she sought from Tsukiyama, Okuni was going to need longer than a few minutes.

Somewhat mechanically by this point, she inked a new summoning circle on the floor over the outline of the one from the previous night, and placed a larger, more ceremonial incense burner in the center. _"If all of this doesn't get her majesty's attention, I don't know what will."_

Once she was finished, Okuni set her calligraphy tools aside and stood to examine her work, wiping her brow. It was almost the moment of truth. She placed the last of the incense inside the burner and turned back to her Pokemon. "You can do the honors this time, Larvesta."

Her partner scuttled to the edge of the burner and ignited its contents with an Ember. Okuni retrieved the piece of paper she had already written Tsukiyama's name on and let one of its edges catch flame. Now all they could do was wait.

A minute went by, and Okuni had to force herself to breathe. Even so, her body remained rigid as she felt the seconds slipping past.

 _"For Arceus's sake, why did I even try?"_ Okuni finally grumbled. She moved to snuff out the flames, but at that moment, she finally felt the unnatural stillness she had been waiting for take hold of the room. The shroud of smoke that had formed within the circle parted, revealing a familiar purple-haired figure.

"Setsuna?" Okuni blinked, trying to ensure the smoke wasn't muddling her senses. "What are you doing here?"

"She's not going to come to you," Setsuna said. Gesturing to the circle on the floor, she elaborated, "You've made a very nice effort these last few nights, but the incident at the Burning Gates has left most of the others rather agitated. They view themselves as risking further harm if they cross between worlds."

"A viewpoint you don't share?" Okuni dryly noted.

Setsuna gave a small shrug. "I would feel frustrated in your position as well, but I cannot control the fears or behaviors of the other shinigami." She took on a sudden expression of skepticism. "Why this sudden determination, Okuni? Is it because of what I told you on the blimp? Because I wouldn't have you mistaking Tsukiyama advocating to let you fight as a gesture of friendship."

Okuni shook her head. "No. Well, maybe, but I didn't have the full picture two days ago." As quickly as she could, Okuni filled Setsuna in on the information she and Motonari had uncovered. "That's why I need to speak to Tsukiyama. If she knows something-"

Sighing, Setsuna placed her hand on Okuni's shoulder. "Okuni, I don't doubt you mean well. But believe me when I say this a matter you don't want to look further into. This kind of information... it's not my place to tell you. Tsukiyama and Yoko are the only ones who fully understand it."

"But don't you see?" Okuni pleaded. "That's why it has to be Tsukiyama! I'm not expecting any kind of help from Yoko, but if Tsukiyama is the one who stopped this enemy the last time it appeared, why can't she at least tell me how she accomplished it?"

Breaking away from Setsuna, Okuni began to pace the floor of her room, piecing together a new plan. It was a risky idea, but it was the best she could do at the moment. Her mind made up, Okuni turned back to her predecessor. "If she's not going to come to me, take me to her."

"Out of the question," Setsuna automatically responded. Seeing the look on Okuni's face, she added, "It's nothing I hold against you, it's simply in your own best interest. Yoko would have both our heads if she found out I brought you to the castle without her permission."

"I don't give a damn how Yoko feels about me!" Okuni shot back. "Does she expect me to be grateful that she decided to barter with some second-rate demon for who got to own my soul, just so she could make me run all over Ransei taking care of the work none of you want to do? Especially when you and I both know she would have just as easily let me rot inside the Burning Gates without blinking her one eye if she'd thought for a moment there was a better option?" Okuni scoffed at the thought, chest heaving.

"What would Yoko even do if she found out you let me talk with Tsukiyama?" she continued. "Kill me? Can you even kill a shinigami? How would I know, nobody ever thinks to fill me in on information like that!"

"You've made your point!" Setsuna snapped, her voice sharper than Okuni had ever heard it. "Attacking me over Yoko's decisions isn't going to bring either of us anywhere!"

Abruptly, her dark eyes clouded over, as though Setsuna was lost in some memory. When she spoke again, there was a strange note in her voice, somewhere between sadness and something Okuni couldn't name. "We met once before, you know. When you were still human. You were like this then as well. Do you not remember?"

Okuni blinked, caught off guard. "I... no, I don't think I do." She had done her best to leave behind the nineteen years of life she had spent as a mortal human, just a dancer from a village in Chrysalia that no longer existed.

Setsuna looked down, and Okuni felt a spark of remorse for what she had said to the older woman. "Perhaps that's for the better," Setsuna murmured.

Looking up, she held her hand out to Okuni, seeming as though she was viewing the shrine maiden in an entirely new light. "I can only give you ten minutes, at most," she began. "And that's assuming Tsukiyama doesn't throw you out first."

"It's a start," Okuni said, exhaling. "The night's not getting any longer. Let's go."

The two women clasped hands, and Okuni breathed in the smoke from the incense, hearing a soft ring fill her ears. When she opened her eyes, her room in Spectra had vanished. They now stood in the black stone courtyard of a different castle, an eternally purple and scarlet sky hanging over them. Okuni wasn't brought to this place often, but every corner of it that she had seen was permanently ingrained in her mind. The castle of the shinigami, located in the heart of the spirit world. And, if she ever managed to pay off her debt in souls to Yoko, Okuni's future home.

"Let's be quick about it. I would still rather you weren't seen, for both our sakes." Setsuna gestured to the walkway hanging over the edges of the courtyard.

As they made their way up a flight of stairs, Okuni was struck with the chilling realization of how similar this castle's layout was to Spectra's. Perhaps the myth that Spectra's castle had been constructed by spirits was closer to the truth than Okuni had originally given it credit for.

They came to a stop in the second floor hallway, outside an entryway covered by filmy white curtains. "Tsukiyama's rooms are just through here," Setsuna gestured. She rapped her knuckles against the wall, and Okuni heard a faintly familiar, slightly airy voice call out, "Who's there?" There was a short pause, and then a pale hand parted the curtains, revealing Tsukiyama - clad in white robes almost identical to the ones the priestess in Motonari's records had worn, Okuni noted.

"Oh, Setsuna. Good evening." Tsukiyama tilted her head as her gaze slipped to Okuni, regarding her with a soft hum. "What is she doing here, Setsuna? Isn't she yours?"

Setsuna remained hesitant for a moment before speaking. "We - that is, Okuni - wanted to speak with you about something. She's been very determined."

"That's right," Tsukiyama slowly nodded. "I did feel as though someone was trying to contact me last night. Was that you, girl?"

She abruptly shifted her gaze back to Okuni, and Okuni sucked in a breath. Tsukiyama's eyes, though lavender, contained the same striking green flecks as Hoshiko's. _"Her hair is awfully similar as well."_

Okuni's mind was exploding with even more questions, but she merely responded, "Yes, that was me. It really is of utmost urgency, my lady." Remembering her theory about Tsukiyama's lineage, Okuni added on a bow.

"Does Yoko know about this?" she heard Tsukiyama inquire.

"Well, not exactly," Setsuna said. "But given the current situation, I felt as though-"

"Yes, I'm sure." Tsukiyama gave an acknowledging wave of her hand. "You and I seem to be the only two in this castle with an ounce of common sense these days. If this is truly so important, I will offer what information I can."

Setsuna looked back at Okuni, concern still evident in her features. In a hushed voice, she murmured, "Tsukiyama, are you certain? You do realize this is about the incident at the Burning Gates?"

Irritation flashed in Tsukiyama's eyes, and she repeated in a stiffer voice, "As I said, I will offer what information I can. I assure you, I will send the girl on her way if she steps out of line."

"Thank you, Setsuna," Okuni said, stepping between the two women. Taking her mentor's hand, Okuni reassured her, "I can handle myself from here."

Setsuna looked anything but appeased, but she didn't outwardly protest as Okuni followed Tsukiyama through the curtains. Okuni's suspicions were further confirmed by the next room's stark contrast to the rest of the castle, a glittering piece of Illusio in the heart of the shadowed spirit world.

Settling herself in front of a marble dressing table, Tsukiyama unwound her silvery-white hair from its bun and ran her fingers through its long waves. "So," she began, "What sort of inquiry is so specific that you felt only I could give you suitable answers?"

Okuni had been debating the best way to breach the subject for the previous several nights. Not all spirits enjoyed talking about their lives, and the same applied for shinigami. Still, a direct approach would have to do. "Pardon the intrusion, my lady, but given the current attacks that have occurred in both worlds, I felt it wise to look back through Ransei's history for similar incidences. You served as Ransei's shinigami around a thousand years ago, did you not?"

After a pregnant pause, Tsukiyama responded, "That seems correct, yes."

Shifting uncomfortably, Okuni continued. "Well, in the records, it said you were able to stop the demons that attacked then. Is that true?"

"I sealed the most powerful one away," Tsukiyama said, still facing the mirror, although her hands had fallen still. "Once that was accomplished, the armies of the kingdoms combined were able to make quick work of the remaining forces."

"How, though?" Okuni urged, beginning to feel impatient. "Was it some kind of ritual that might still exist in writing?"

Unexpectedly, Tsukiyama chuckled at that question. Okuni squirmed at the sound. Something about that laugh seemed almost unstable, as though Tsukiyama were recalling a whole history known only to her.

"Oh, look at me, girl!" she commanded, whirling around in a blur of silver and white. Okuni once again found herself drawn into those eyes, those green flecks sparkling almost too bright to seem real.

"When you first saw me, you looked as though you had been struck," Tsukiyama remarked. "You can't mean to tell me you don't recognize the signs of the Legendary Pokemon's blessing!" She laughed again, delicately holding one hand in front of her face. "No mere priestess could have done what I did. I was the _only_ one who could." She turned back to rummaging through a jewelry box while Okuni was left to process this new information.

The fabled blessing of Arceus. _"Could it be?"_ The white hair, the unnatural green in both their eyes. Hoshiko had claimed to be a priestess of Arceus. But what if her link to the Legendary Pokemon was far stronger than Okuni could have ever dreamed, and Okuni had simply missed the signs?

 _"Wait."_ One aspect of Tsukiyama's claim didn't add up with what Okuni knew about those chosen by the Legendary Pokemon. She had only had the privilege of escorting one of these warriors into the afterlife, but Okuni had been there at the moment of her death. _"Her appearance_ was _altered after she was blessed, but in death, her body and spirit returned to their former states."_

"My lady..." Okuni began, then bit down on her lip. If she proceeded, she would be treading on extremely thin ice. Asking any spirit the manner of their death was generally considered at best a breach of etiquette, and at worst a very dangerous mistake. If a spirit was unaware that they had died, forcing them to relive their final moments could trigger a violent response. In worst-case scenarios, the shock and pain of the memories was sometimes powerful enough to transform them into demons.

Okuni had no way to predict Tsukiyama's reaction. But Tsukiyama raised her head, indicating that she had heard, and Okuni had no choice but to continue.

She took a deep breath, and finished the question before her brain could force her voice to stop talking. "My lady, under what circumstances did you become a shinigami? You have to die first. Why don't you resemble how you would have appeared before the Legendary Pokemon blessed you?"

Almost instantly, Okuni knew that she had pushed her luck too far. The change in Tsukiyama's demeanor was quicker than blinking, and she whipped around, advancing on Okuni as though she had momentarily sprouted wings.

"You would accuse us of lying?" Tsukiyama challenged, her voice barely above a whisper. "If that is so, you should leave now." They were close enough for Okuni to properly make out Tsukiyama's shinigami tattoo for the first time - an asphodel flower. _"Regrets that follow one to the grave."_

"Please, my lady," Okuni appeased, holding up her hands and slowly backing towards the exit. "I only ask in the name of the greater good. I understand if the memories are painful, but you must-"

"We _must_?" Tsukiyama fumed. "No part of your pitiful existence is entitled to the knowledge of the sacrifices we made, girl!" When Okuni didn't move, Tsukiyama seized her arm with surprising strength and hurled her to the floor.

"Do you wish to know the truth of the future?" Tsukiyama continued as she stalked back to her dressing table, plucking up a hairpin with a frighteningly sharp-looking point. "We knew it the moment we witnessed the catastrophe at the Burning Gates." Gripping the hairpin like a dagger, Tsukiyama slowly began to move towards Okuni, who was now scrambling backwards on her hands.

"A thousand years ago, we barely managed to seal it away," Tsukiyama hissed, a dangerous gleam in her eyes. "And its power has only grown. With it loose again, there is no future for Ransei but darkness."

Bracing herself, Okuni held out her arm in front of her face as Tsukiyama raised the hairpin in an arc above her head. But before the gruesome tableau could escalate any further, both women were interrupted by a deep rasp coming from the doorway.

"What is this?" A shadow fell across the floor, and Okuni slowly turned her head to be greeted by the sight of the last person she wanted to see at this moment.

The _de facto_ leader of Ransei's shinigami was by no means a remarkable beauty. Her black hair was cut in the razor-straight style of traditional female samurai, hanging just above her shoulders. For reasons unknown to Okuni, she had chosen not to restore her left eye upon becoming a spirit, and the edges of a scar crept out from beneath her customary silk eyepatch. Her remaining eye was an empty, cold black. But Yoko's defining trait had always been her height - Okuni had no doubts that Yoko could stand in a lineup beside the likes of Lords Yoshihiro and Kenshin and be able to match them, if not even stand an inch or two higher.

As always, Yoko wore her fitted black armor adorned with a crest of what Okuni assumed was her shinigami tattoo - red and white anemone flowers. A matching cloak swept out behind her, and her heeled, armored boots helped her tower even more over Okuni and Tsukiyama. The steel naginata that Okuni had never seen her parted from was currently strapped across her back, and she stood in the entryway with her arms crossed, a pipe resting in her right hand. Just behind her, Okuni could make out Setsuna kneeling on the floor apologetically.

Yoko's eye swept from Tsukiyama to Okuni, and she made a contemptuous noise in her throat. "I'll sort you out later," she grumbled at Okuni. Yoko blew out a cloud of smoke from her pipe, and before Okuni could protest, her surroundings became muddled and gray. Okuni coughed, trying not to breathe too much in, but it was too late. Her vision blurred, and her grip on consciousness faded.

When Okuni came to, she was lying in the circle she had drawn on the floor of her room, Scolipede and Larvesta anxiously hovering over her in the dark. Okuni slowly stood and hacked again, trying to clear the scent of Yoko's pipe from her lungs. She was at least glad to see that the candles she always kept lit at night hadn't had time to burn any lower. Time could sometimes move differently with spirits, and there had been several incidences in the past where Okuni had returned to the human world to discover that she had been gone for several hours, or even a full day.

After taking a moment to lean against Scolipede and calm her nerves, Okuni stepped onto the moonlit balcony, pondering where she could move forward from here. She couldn't allow herself to think too much on what Tsukiyama had said in that sudden fit of rage. But even though the night had gone sour, Okuni had still gained some useful information.

"What do you two think I should do?" she asked her partners. Scolipede, ever the moderate, clicked its antennae together indecisively. Larvesta, however, scuttled up next to Okuni and illuminated the embers scattered throughout its coat, jerking its head in the direction of the adjoining room.

"You think I should try and see if she knows something, huh?" Okuni murmured. "Well, let's find out."

Okuni exited her own room and made her way down the hall to Hoshiko's. Despite the hour, Okuni barely even had to knock on the door frame before Hoshiko slid it open.

"What are you doing up so late, Okuni?" she asked.

"I could ask the same of you," Okuni grinned.

Hoshiko returned the smile, but her amber eyes were troubled. "I couldn't sleep, I suppose. You can come in if you like."

They sat on the edge of Hoshiko's bed together, an awkward silence between them. Okuni supposed there was no casual way to ease into the subject. "Hoshiko... you're probably going to think it's a strange question, but I need to ask you something."

Hoshiko blinked, and there was no mistaking it now. Those emerald flecks in her eyes matched the ones in Tsukiyama's perfectly. For a moment, Okuni couldn't help but be mesmerized by the way they caught even the dim candlelight, until Hoshiko's voice snapped her out of the trance. "Okuni? Is everything alright?"

"Not really, to tell the truth," Okuni said. Instinctively, she reached for Hoshiko's hand. "I know I promised not to pressure you about your past, but this is really important. Have you ever been able to do something you can't quite explain? Maybe something involving light, or a ritual from the temple?"

She expected Hoshiko to dismiss her with an odd glance, or laugh the question off. But after a moment of consideration, Hoshiko looked down and slowly said, "There is one thing. I haven't really properly tested the extent of control I have over it, though."

"Do you feel safe showing it to me?" Okuni asked. Hoshiko looked genuinely torn, and Okuni felt guilty about pressuring her. _"Even if you're right, you need to be sure of it,"_ Okuni reminded herself.

Before Okuni could say anything else, Hoshiko stood and moved to the center of the room. "You're the only person I've shown this to," she began. "Even I'm not completely sure what it means. I'm not sure this is a good idea, but maybe together we can make sense of it."

Hoshiko took a deep breath and raised her arms out to her sides. She tilted her head up as well, and the candlelight reflected off that strange headdress she always seemed to be wearing. For a moment, she was completely still, a goddess in meditation. Then, the lights appeared.

They were small things, little orbs of silvery white that unfolded out of the darkness. But they collected around Hoshiko like fragments of fallen stars, slowly bobbing up and down in their own erratic tempo. Okuni caught her breath as she watched Hoshiko's face, straining to concentrate. After close to a minute, she groaned, and her eyes flew open. The lights dissolved immediately.

"That's about as long as I can usually manage to do it," Hoshiko panted. "I don't really know what they are, or if they can do anything. Were you hoping for something a little more climactic?"

Okuni was still in awe, and took a moment to register Hoshiko's words.

"No. In fact, I think we need to learn everything we can about whatever that just was." Okuni took a moment to consider her next words.

"How much do you know about performing exorcisms?"


	9. Chapter 9

_**Chapter 8**_

After leaving Ginchiyo with her junior warlord, Aya made her way throughout Violight's castle, surveying which areas still required repairs after the attack. Ironically, the oldest sections of the castle had sustained the least damage; it was here that Aya had elected to house the injured after the infirmary had reached full capacity. This wing in particular was made up almost entirely of old soldiers' barracks, and had become the base of operations for the warriors of Illusio.

Though it was late in the afternoon, most of Aya's troops were still going about their individual assignments in rebuilding the castle. As such, she only passed a handful of soldiers in the halls, who acknowledged her presence with quick bows before continuing on their way. Aya enjoyed the conciseness of it. She had never understood the need for ceremonial displays that only served to slow everything down on the battlefield. Of course, perhaps that came from having her title challenged all her life.

There had been rumors concerning the legitimacy of Aya's parentage from the very beginning, and despite her mother's insistence that they held no water, Aya's father remained suspicious until his dying day. Kenshin's birth had given him all the reason he needed to lock Aya out of inheriting the throne once and for all, although it was several years more before Aya learned this, and realized that it wasn't normal for the firstborn of the Illusio royal family to grow up practically out of sight. But it explained the way her mother had always looked at her, loving, but with a tinge of pity. Why the only times her father seemed to acknowledge her was when he had no choice. Why there had been so many whispers throughout the castle when Aya's affinity for Ice-type Pokemon had shown.

But in spite of the circumstances, nothing had been able to sever the bond that grew between brother and sister. Aya underwent all of the same training alongside Kenshin, and they learned to maneuver their way through Ransei's politics together. At 24, Aya was appointed captain of the royal guard, the youngest warrior in Illusio's history to claim the position. In the time that followed, their mother succumbed to illness shortly before their father was killed by an assassin. Aya's final mission before resigning to serve as Kenshin's right hand had been delivering justice for the act. Both events had haunted her dreams before becoming reality.

Nearly ten years later, Aya still had whispers to contend with ( _how_ people developed such ideas about the nature of her relationship with Kenshin, she would never understand), but the truth was that she could simply no longer be bothered to care. If it was a matter that didn't concern the future of Illusio, it was a matter that didn't concern her.

Aya entered the room that had informally become her quarters over the past two days; bare but for a cot someone had thought to bring in, and an old table that was already half broken. Atop this, Aya had laid out a map of Violight, a larger map of Ransei marked with the sites of each known attack, the choice scrolls she had thought to bring from Illusio, and her own records of everything she had seen within Violight thus far.

Kept separate from all of this, stored alongside the few pieces of jewelry Aya had brought with her, was a shard of the strange black metal that made up the weapons of the enemy. One of her men had recovered it in the aftermath of the attack on the blimp, and Aya knew Kenshin would wish to analyze it further. For now though, she kept it stowed away. Froslass became agitated whenever she brought it out, and when Aya herself had studied it unprotected for too long, she had developed a stabbing headache.

Now Aya laid her naginata atop the maps, ignoring the table's groan of protest. As she did so, she heard a faint whisper flutter through the air. _"My lady…"_

Aya jumped back, eyes roaming every corner of the small room. Froslass gave a cry of concern, floating to her side.

"Did you hear that just now?" Aya asked her partner. Froslass looked at her quizzically, then blew a cloud of snowflakes around Aya's head.

"You think I just need to get more sleep?" Although Froslass _was_ right in that regard, Aya felt that its condescending air was a touch unnecessary.

Before she could communicate this, however, a clatter came from the doorway, followed by a familiar voice. "Apologies, my lady! I wasn't informed that you were no longer with Lady Ginchiyo!"

In his haste to bow, Kanetsugu had dropped one of the multiple scrolls cradled in his arms. Behind him, Aya caught sight of Kadabra levitating an additional two, their pages frozen in the midst of falling open.

"At ease, Kanetsugu," Aya laughed, in spite of what had just occurred. "I take it you found some reading pertaining to our goal?"

Kanetsugu and Kadabra rested the new scrolls atop the ones brought from Illusio (the table sagging under the additional weight). "While Violight's library is overall not as extensive as Illusio's, Kadabra and I did happen upon a specialized section that seemed to hold pertinent information," he explained. Aya knelt down to examine the scroll resting on top of the pile, reading its title out loud.

"Weapons of Legend: A Complete Anthology?" Aya frowned. "Kanetsugu, this is just an old collection of myths. There's not a child in Ransei who hasn't grown up hearing tales of warlords with magic armor and lost swords buried beneath ancient battlefields. I'm surprised you gave this a second glance."

The admonishment visibly dimmed Kanetsugu's excitement, but after a moment, he steeled himself. "Of course, my lady, you're absolutely right. Under normal circumstances, I would not have presented a record of this nature to you. But - with all due respect - Kadabra discovered an illustration within its pages that I believe could be a credible source of information." Hurriedly bowing once more, he punctuated, "Not that I question your judgement, my lady."

Aya eyed the scroll again, considering this statement. _"I suppose there's no harm in looking it over."_ She gestured to Kadabra. "Show me this illustration."

Kadabra psychically lifted the scroll and unrolled it to an elaborate painting. Aya recognized the corresponding myth at once. Taking the scroll into her hands, she began to read.

"And so the Legendary Pokemon bestowed upon each of the seventeen founding warlords a sword, imbued with their kingdom's chosen element. It was decreed that should the need to defend Ransei from certain destruction ever arise once more, these swords would grant their power to any warrior who could prove worthy of wielding them." It was the same legend as the one she and Kenshin had read in the castle library together during their childhood. In the version Aya was familiar with, Illusio's weapon was a massive crystal greatsword, capable of toppling entire armies without spilling a drop of blood.

"I'm afraid I don't see what's so significant..." Aya trailed off, her eyes drawn to the lower corner of the illustration. Inked in shadow, as though the artist had tried to blot it out, was a lone female figure standing separate from the warlords bathing in the glow of the Legendary Pokemon. The woman was drawn tall and thin, with half of her face covered by bandages, and in her hand was a bloodstained dagger. Aya's eyes widened. There was no mistaking the design of the blade - it was the same as the ones this enemy used.

At that moment, a red-hot burning sensation pierced a hole through Aya's sternum. She gasped, and this time when she heard the voice, Aya knew it was no figment of her imagination. _"My lady... The blood of Illusio has returned..."_

She hastily shoved the scroll back into Kanetsugu's hands, ignoring his flinch when Aya's fingers brushed his. "Kanetsugu, find a replica of this illustration, preferably one that could be brought back to Illusio. I must notify Kenshin of this at once."

Kanetsugu seemed caught off guard by the sudden dismissal. "My lady, are you alright?"

"Yes, quite." Aya fought to keep her voice natural as the burning intensified. "You are dismissed."

Kanetsugu's expression was one of poorly-hidden doubt, but Aya knew he wouldn't dare contradict a direct order. The moment he and Kadabra left, she collapsed, and Froslass flew to her side. Aya opened the neckline of her kimono and tore on the pendant so hard, she heard the clasp as it snapped in two. The stone clattered to the wooden floor, giving off a brilliant glow that Aya hadn't even thought it capable of. Looking down, she saw an angry red burn exactly the size of the pendant just above her breasts. _"What in the name of the Legendary Pokemon?"_

Aya's breathing grew ragged as her consciousness separated from her body. Alarmed, she tried to reach for her physical self, now motionless on the floor - but she was already being pulled out of the room by some greater force. In flashes, Aya flitted through the oldest wing of the castle, in pursuit of a pale blue light that eventually sank into the ground. Whatever form she had taken on allowed for her to follow, and despite her disconcertion, she was able to make out a wide room, inhabited by some sort of stone pillar. _"My lady... You are awaited..."_

The sudden sensation of being immersed in frigid water snapped Aya back into one location, and when she opened her eyes, all she saw was Froslass hovering over her. Her partner had created a thin layer of frost over the burn, with the added effect of bringing Aya out of whatever trance she had been locked into.

"Thank you, Froslass," Aya panted, sitting up. Her gaze went back to the pendant, still giving off a cool blue glow where it had fallen. Aya tentatively reached out and plucked it up by the string of the necklace. Her eyes narrowed, and she brought it as close to her face as she dared. It wasn't just her mind playing tricks on her, the pendant was now an entirely different stone. It was as though the charm Aya had worn around her neck for decades had been covered by a thin veneer, now burned away to reveal a shard of crystal too similar to the ones of her home for Aya to dismiss it as coincidence.

As a test, she held the pendant towards the door, and the glow intensified. _"It's trying to lead me somewhere."_ Aya was already sure of the destination, that strange underground room she had seen. There, she could somehow feel in her bones that the source of the voice was waiting for her. Even so, she wasn't about to seek it out alone.

"Froslass, stay by my side." Her partner fell in beside Aya as she found her feet. After checking to be sure the hallway was empty, Aya sheathed her naginata across her back and began to follow the glow of the pendant as it led her deeper into the oldest section of Violight's castle. The lavish, old-fashioned style of architecture in this wing was noticeably different from the otherwise stark fortress, and Aya suspected the cluster of corridors she traveled through now had been built before Violight fell under control of the warrior Tachibana clan.

After several minutes of wandering, Aya and Froslass entered a room that appeared to be another empty barrack. Yet based on the glowing of the pendant, they were growing closer to their goal. Aya swept the room over slower this time, focusing on a section of the floor that seemed to be peeling away. Kneeling down, she pulled the remaining wood up with little difficulty to reveal a large trapdoor.

 _"What is this doing here?"_ The trapdoor swung open easily at Aya's touch, revealing a ladder that looked as though it had been old when Aya was born leading downwards. The pendant began to flicker, its light changing to a more intense shade of blue.

"Do you suppose that means keep going?" Aya wondered aloud. Froslass eyed the ladder with a skepticism Aya could have likely felt even without their link.

"Are you sensing any sort of trouble?" she prodded, turning to face her partner.

Froslass shook its head, but insistently flicked its sleeve towards the hole in the floor. Aya raised an eyebrow. "So you're telling me that there's something down there strong enough for you to sense from here, and it's not dangerous as far as you can tell, but you still don't want to find out what it might be?" Froslass thought this over, but still nodded, satisfied with its judgement.

Aya pretended to scoff and began climbing down the ladder. "You have let the years dull your sense of adventure." Froslass gave an indignant cry, and was following her within moments. Aya grinned. Her partner was like her in many ways, one being that it couldn't stand to be thought of as stagnant. They reached the bottom quickly, and Aya felt stone beneath her feet. She held up the pendant, now giving off light like a miniature sun, and was instantly intrigued by their surroundings.

They had entered a vast underground cavern roughly the same size as the entry hall of Violight's castle. Aya hadn't realized that the cliffs the castle had been constructed atop were hollow. Old tracks worn into the stone floor suggested that at some point, many different people and their Pokemon had come and gone through - but for what purpose?

 _"_ A warlord could store half an army down here if they saw fit," Aya marveled to Froslass. She cast the pendant's light around the room, and when it reached the far end of the cavern, what was illuminated made her gasp. _"Impossible!"_ But there was no mistaking one of Illusio's own crystals, an obelisk planted into the stone floor. Its visibly chipped surface glinted a dull yellow.

Slowly moving closer, Aya reached out with her other hand, brushing its surface with her fingertips. Sure enough, she heard the voice again, now a loud murmur that echoed in her ears. _"My lady!"_ Where Aya had touched the crystal, its surface was illuminated with white light.

 _"How did a crystal of Illusio find its way to Violight? And why is it buried beneath the castle?"_ She would need to show this to Lady Ginchiyo at once as soon as the Electric warlord was in better condition.

Froslass, meanwhile, had clearly overcome its initial aversion to the cavern, and was now floating around the crystal with curiosity. It sent a small cloud of snowflakes its way, rearing back when the contact resulted in another burst of light. At that, Aya was struck with an idea, and pressed the fiercely glowing pendant to the larger crystal. Immediately, the entire cavern was filled with soft, golden-white illumination.

To Aya's surprise, an image began to take shape within the crystal - a familiar image. She was looking in on the throne room of Illusio's castle. There were the entry doors, and further to the left, there was the rainbow cluster of gemstones that made up Kenshin's throne. Aya brought her face closer, only to hear Froslass cry out a warning. She looked over at the pendant, and snatched her hand back out of alarm. The stone was being absorbed by the larger crystal! With a faint _crack_ , it vanished altogether in a bright flash.

 _"What in all seventeen kingdoms was that?"_ Though taking care to step back from the pillar, Aya couldn't tear her gaze away from the image illuminated in its surface. The throne room was so clear, she could have sworn she was staring through a window. But wait, one thing had changed. Aya blinked and shook her head to be sure it wasn't some trick of the light. No, it had to be - her pendant had materialized on the floor of the throne room, hundreds of miles away.

An thought began to take root in Aya's mind. The teleporting crystals of Illusio's battlefield had always been the Psychic kingdom's greatest tactical advantage. Only trained warriors of the royal guard knew which pairs were connected, and where each one's counterpart was located. But what if, at some point in time, there had been others? Larger crystals, with the power to move warriors and Pokemon much farther than across a battlefield? If so, what if attempts had been made to set up a network between the kingdoms using these crystals?

"I don't mean to get ahead of ourselves," Aya began to Froslass, taking in the golden glow. "But this could be the answer to our transportation problem."

* * *

"Still no good?"

Hoshiko slumped down on the grass, leaning back in frustration as she sighed. "Nothing. I didn't think finding a partner would be this difficult!"

Okuni looked out towards the forest, stroking her chin as she thought. "To tell you the truth, neither did I. Most warriors at least have an affinity for a certain type of Pokemon, but either yours isn't a type typically found in Spectra, or you're a special case."

Hoshiko looked up, her amber eyes curious. "Special case?"

"Sometimes a warrior is only meant to link with one Pokemon in particular," Okuni elaborated. "You don't see them that often, but they do exist. Lady No is one."

This information didn't seem to assure Hoshiko. "Well, I hope I'm not!" she huffed. "If that's the case, I'll probably be dead before I meet my perfect link with my luck. It's almost like I'm just not meant to find one."

"Oh, don't say that! You told me you definitely feel a connection with Pokemon, so your partner has to be waiting out there somewhere!" Okuni reassured her. But now she could see that bringing up Lady No had probably been a bad idea. Ever since the night they had arrived in Spectra, Hoshiko always seemed to grow uncomfortable whenever Okuni mentioned her.

Changing tactics, Okuni laid down in the grass beside Hoshiko. "Like I said, there usually aren't too many in one lifetime," Okuni reassured her, looking upwards into Hoshiko's worried face. "Your affinity is probably just for Pokemon we don't typically see in Spectra, like Grass-types or Electric-types."

Hoshiko thought on this for a moment, then took on a curious expression. "Well, what about you?" she asked, gesturing to Larvesta, who was resting at Okuni's feet. "From what I understand, Larvesta are rather rare the world over, not just in Ransei. How did you two meet, let alone wind up as each others' perfect links?"

"You really want to know?" Okuni responded. Hoshiko nodded silently.

"Really, it was mostly just a string of happy coincidences. But it's definitely a story." Breathing out, Okuni thought back on the night she had first met Larvesta, nearly fifteen years earlier.

"I found myself in Terrera at the same time as their harvest festival. As you might imagine, that sort of event is fairly major in a desert kingdom, and that year's harvest had been particularly kind. The festival was in full swing throughout the entire city, and Lord Shingen had even opened parts of the castle to the public. But I wasn't interested in any sort of royal banquet. I made more money performing that one night than I've sometimes made in months." Okuni sighed wistfully at the recollection before continuing.

"I didn't feel like walking all the way back to where I was staying to change out of my costume, so I just wore my yukata over it. Which would be fortunate for me later on, although I couldn't have known it at the time. I went from street to street sampling the stalls, until later on in the night, when I eventually found my way to the more... well, let's say colorful side of the city. Now, on the night of any festival in a city like Terrera, gambling dens are typically going to be doing prime business."

Okuni paused, remembering who she was talking to. "Should I skim over this next part if it offends any priestess sensibilities of yours?"

Hoshiko shrugged. "Just because I'm from a temple doesn't mean I'm completely naive. I know what goes on in places like those."

Chuckling, Okuni murmured, "I'm sure you do." Letting herself fall back into the memory, she continued.

"Since I still had a nice amount of gold on me, I decided to try my luck at one of the halls. To be perfectly honest, I'm still not entirely sure what compelled me to. It's not exactly a hobby of mine." Okuni looked up at the clouds leisurely making their way across the autumn sky and sighed.

"I suppose the romantic in me wants it to have been fate." Whatever the case, she could still clearly picture the building in her mind; two floors (one above ground, one below), the bright scarlet and gold facade, a silhouette of a Gyrados painted in black on the window.

"That night, the game being run had much higher stakes than I was prepared for. Luckily for my purse, I didn't have to suffer through too many rounds before the proprietor of the den brought out the evening's _grand prize_." Okuni spat the words out, the memory still filling her with loathing for every other person in that stifled room.

"It was a Larvesta, trafficked across the ocean from the Unova region. The Legendary Pokemon only knows the circumstances that brought it to Ransei, since that was still when Valora was the only kingdom that traded with outside regions. The poor thing was injured, half-starved, and looked as though all the fight had been taken out of it. I couldn't just leave it there."

"Did you win it?" Hoshiko asked. She leaned forward, fully engrossed in Okuni's story.

"Win it?" Okuni snorted. "I don't think I've ever faced worse odds in anything than I did in that game. No, I knew I would have to get creative, and I didn't have much time to come up with a plan. So I looked around at all of my opponents, trying to find anything that linked them together, and I realized - almost all of them were warriors like me."

"How were you able to tell?" Hoshiko interrupted. "Were their Pokemon all with them?"

"No, most gambling dens will refuse to let a warrior play unless they leave their partner in a separate room," Okuni explained. "After all, it wouldn't do to have someone order their Psychic-type to reshuffle a deck of cards, or to just sic their Pokemon on whoever they might lose to. But I had seen most of them come in, and even with the ones I hadn't, it wasn't difficult to tell. Warriors tend to style themselves so that they'll appear more similar to their Pokemon, myself included." She gestured to the pattern decorating her top that matched the spots in Larvesta's coat.

"Even though there was a floor separating me from Scolipede, our link was still strong enough for me to communicate a basic message: raise a fuss. I'm not sure exactly what it did, but the next thing you knew, about six or seven Pokemon were all fighting with each other in the lobby. That took care of the warriors and the proprietor, since they all rushed out to make sure their partners were safe."

Hoshiko tilted her head to one side as she imagined the scene. "What about the others though? Didn't you say there were some who didn't have Pokemon?"

Okuni grimaced. "Yes, that was problematic. This is where me still having my costume on under my yukata comes into play. The finale of the performance I did that night involves me releasing pigment powders from my costume, which Scolipede combines with its own spores to create an effect that makes the air around me shimmer and change color. I didn't have Scolipede to help me, but I still had some leftover powder in the pockets of my costume. In a small space like the room where the game was being held, it was plenty effective on its own. So I jumped onto the table and-" She pantomimed tossing a cloud of powder into the air.

"As if things weren't chaotic enough, that filled up the entire room with blue. Think of the effect as being like a very dense fog. I wrapped my arms around Larvesta and ran for what I hoped was the exit. Somehow, I made it up that flight of stairs without falling and breaking my neck." Okuni shook her head, unable to believe now that she had done anything so reckless.

"After that, Scolipede and I figured getting out of Terrera probably wouldn't hurt. As soon as I had retrieved my things from where I was staying, we were on a blimp to Viperia. I spent the next few weeks lying low there, nursing Larvesta back to health. That was also when I met Lady Nene, but that's not _directly_ relevant to this particular story." Okuni paused to pat Larvesta on its head before continuing.

"Originally, I had planned to bring Larvesta to Ignis once it was healthy again. I had no way of sending it back to Unova, but I thought that perhaps it could find a home for itself among other Fire Pokemon. It took a while for me to realize that something was different. I suppose I had just always thought Scolipede would be my only partner. And I certainly didn't suspect that my true affinity might have laid with Fire-types. I finally noticed the change one night, while I was helping Larvesta learn how to use its flame attacks again. We began to move in perfect sync with each other, not just physically, but as though our thoughts were one and the same. We even realized what was happening at the exact same time."

She looked down, smiling at the memory. Her happiness had flooded throughout Larvesta, and the fringe around its neck had lit up, finally allowing it to regain its fire. And just like that, it had become the three of them. "At first I was worried that my link with Scolipede would somehow grow weaker," Okuni confessed. "But we had already been together for so long by that point, it didn't really matter. Maybe Larvesta could read me better on a raw emotional level, but Scolipede was the one who knew me from experience."

"You really care for your Pokemon, don't you?" Hoshiko remarked thoughtfully.

"Well, that's what being a warrior is meant to be all about," Okuni said. "I'm glad Ransei is rediscovering that. It's not about who's fought in the most battles or who has the most intimidating Pokemon at their disposal. Being a warrior is about treating your partners as equals. When one of you feels something, so does the other. Of course, every warrior has different ways of showing it, but I don't believe the Legendary Pokémon would grant that sort of gift to someone who would waste it."

Hoshiko considered this statement before slowly nodding. "You're absolutely right, Okuni." After a moment, she added, "Thank you for helping me today. I think I have a better understanding of the connection you talked about now."

Okuni grinned. "Any time! We can keep at it as long as you're here. I know there's something special about you, Hoshiko. We just need to find a way to tap into it!"

"Are you sure we haven't already?" Hoshiko remarked. "I doubt there are many warriors in Ransei who can do... well, you know."

In spite of herself, Okuni shivered at the memory of the strange lights that Hoshiko had summoned the night before. "You're right," she said. "We should definitely make time to figure out what those can do as well." A different memory resurfacing in her mind, Okuni asked, "What about that nightmare of yours? Have you had that again?"

Hoshiko's face turned troubled once more. "Yes, once on the night we arrived in Spectra, and another time since then. If anything, I think it's only grown more vivid." The priestess paused, wrapping her arms around herself at the memory. "But what you said to do does help. Now I'm able to remind myself that I'm not there anymore when I wake up."

The haunted expression that Hoshiko had taken on made Okuni regretful of bringing up the subject. Putting on a smile, she walked in front of Hoshiko and turned back to face the white-haired girl. "Well, that's enough talk about dreary things! Let's go back to happy memories, why don't we?"

Hoshiko smiled, clearly grateful for Okuni's optimism. "Like I already said, the most adventure I've had in my life happened because of us meeting. But there are still a lot of stories about your travels through Ransei that you haven't told me."

"Well, there are so many to choose from!" Okuni laughed. "Although going back to Viperia, I definitely learned the hard way that the ninjas there are made of tougher stuff than most..."

The two girls continued to exchange stories as they walked back to the city. As they approached the castle, a commotion near the gates caught Okuni's attention. "What's going on?" Hoshiko wondered out loud as they drew closer.

"I can't quite tell," Okuni responded, now feeling a touch of worry. "I don't think anything was supposed to be arriving at the airfield today..."

The sight of Ina waving them down saved Okuni from having to shove her and Hoshiko's way past the castle guards. "Okuni! Hoshiko!" Ina cried out, racing towards them. "Did you only just get back?"

"Yes," Hoshiko began. "Do you know what all of this is about?"

Ina nodded, struggling to catch her breath. "It only just happened - I'm guessing Lady No didn't tell you, Okuni - but I recognized it and ran straight out of the castle to try and find you two."

"Easy now," Okuni reassured Ina, offering her arm for Ina to lean on. "Breathe in and start over."

Taking a deep breath, Ina steadied herself before speaking again, somewhat slower this time. "A few minutes ago, a Pokemon carrying a rider flew into the castle. I was in the garden with Quagsire and Prinplup and saw the entire thing. It was a Hydreigon, with Lord Nobunaga himself riding it! For some reason, he's here in Spectra, right now!"


	10. Chapter 10

_**Chapter 9**_

The sight of Nobunaga striding into the throne room of Spectra as the sun set behind him, clad all in black armor with Hydreigon looming by his side, would have struck fear into the hearts of most warlords. No, however, was not most warlords.

"My lord," she murmured, standing from her throne and kneeling before the Dragon warlord. There was no need for the gesture, and they both knew it. Nobunaga may have been her liege, but it was because No had rallied the armies of three separate kingdoms behind him that Dragnor had become his. And from their first meeting, they had both sensed the spark stronger than any title between them. Until No could be certain they were alone, though, it was best to keep up appearances.

No glanced upwards, curling her lips in a half-smile as her eyes met Nobunaga's. "You honor Spectra with this visit. For what reason have you come?" That gaze was what had first drawn her to him - regardless of whether Nobunaga was fighting in battle, taking tea, or sharing her bed, there was a fire behind his eyes that refused to dim for anything. It was what No had craved all her life, and she found it in no other person. It was truly a dragon's fire, one that burned hot enough to rival even the flames of hell. No would accept nothing less.

"The matter that is currently forcing the hand of every warlord in Ransei," Nobunaga replied.

"Violight and Valora," No nodded. She had been suspecting some sort of meeting between the warlords to be called in regards to the attacks. It seemed that Nobunaga was simply doing as they had always done - taking matters into his own hands.

"Five days since Violight, four days since Valora," Nobunaga mused as No stood. "To a tactician, it is a most puzzling attack pattern. Why would a powerful enemy make its presence known in such a forward manner, but then not attempt a final push while we were still reeling and disorganized?"

Beginning to pace back and forth before the throne, he continued. "There is also the matter of where the attacks occurred. What links these two particular kingdoms? What could an army seek to obtain by striking at them with no warning, and slaughtering indiscriminately? And once again, why the lull?" He turned towards No, his face darkened by thought. "Once I learned the nature of this enemy, I understood why. I could not think of them in terms of a human army - I required someone who understands the workings of spirits."

Nobunaga met her gaze, and No could see his unspoken challenge. "There is only one warrior in Ransei who truly does."

"You flatter me, my lord," No smirked. "As it so happens, I myself gave thought to these concerns as I awaited word from you and Mitsuhide. I believe that the leader of this army is an exceptionally powerful demon who possesses the ability to tear open rogue portals between the human and spirit worlds. By doing so, it can send its forces to any kingdom it so desires."

Nobunaga's eyebrow quirked upwards. "Meaning any kingdom could be next, and its inhabitants would have no warning whatsoever?"

"It's not quite a death sentence," No elaborated. "Ripping open the fabric between realms costs anything energy, be they living or spirit. Even my authorized communications with the spirit realm are often quite exhausting. Creating two such rifts within two days will have severely weakened this demon, although I cannot speak as to how quickly it regains its strength."

"Which brings us to the matter of the counterattack," Nobunaga picked up. "Now that we know our enemy, it would be logical to strike back before it can fully recover its strength. This time, we shall choose the battlefield, someplace that could cancel out any more surprises the enemy may have up its sleeve."

"I take it you already have such a battlefield in mind?" No remarked, taking her place on her throne once more. As she did so, she crossed her legs, taking full advantage of the slit up her yukata, and felt a spark of satisfaction when Nobunaga's eyes briefly glanced downwards. Some things never changed.

"Of course," Nobunaga replied, resettling himself instantly. "Which of Ransei's battlefields has only been taken a handful of times in all recorded history? One so unique to the environment of its kingdom that even attackers of otherwordly origin may find themselves troubled? There is only one - the crystal field of Illusio."

"Now that is a fascinating proposition." No leaned forward, hanging on to every word. "Would Lord Kenshin agree to this plan, however?"

Nobunaga appeared untroubled by the thought. "When given the choice, Lord Kenshin prefers diplomacy to the sword, but he is not a fool. He will understand the threat this enemy will pose to Ransei should we allow this opportunity to slip by. Between he and I, we shall unite the armies of as many kingdoms as possible, and lead the strike back. When the correct strategies are employed, a war may be prevented with just one battle."

No gave a small laugh at that statement. "An uncharacteristically optimistic sentiment, my lord. Besides, there is one problem, although it is a delicious plan."

"Is that so?" Nobunaga replied. "Do elaborate."

"You have nothing with which to draw this enemy to Illusio," No remarked. "Why would they risk fighting an assembled force of trained warriors and Pokemon, when they can continue causing mass panic and destruction with these seemingly uncoordinated blitz attacks?"

Nobunaga smiled, cold and calculating. "On the contrary, we shall have two lures. The first would be the promise of so many powerful warriors all in one place. It would be set up to appear as an annual gathering of warlords. To us it may appear an obvious trap, but most enemies would only see as far as the chance to eliminate many key players in one swoop. Since the Violight attack appeared targeted towards Lady Ginchiyo, I do not believe it out of the question to assume this enemy is aware of each kingdom's ruler."

"Fair enough," No conceded. "And as for the second lure?"

The look Nobunaga fixed her with was one No had seen before. The last time had been six months earlier, when he had asked her to join him atop Infinite Tower.

"Were you not the one who boasted to me of how you are the strongest matriarch Spectra has perhaps ever seen?" he queried. "How when your powers first awoke, it attracted spirits from every corner of Ransei?"

"Yes, and how as a result, I had to teach myself ways to keep it under control," No responded. "I spent my fourteenth year inking protection sigils onto my skin every morning and bathing in rosemary water so as not to draw attention that would expose who I truly was."

"And it has been ten years since then," Nobunaga said. "You harnessed those powers long before we crossed paths. I have seen you use them. All I would ask is if you were to perhaps draw up a spell that would encourage these demons to reveal themselves when the time was right. No harm would come to you... unless you so wished it."

"You're showing concern for my safety now? How thoughtful." No sensed Mismagius lurking in the shadows of the throne room, and called it to her side. "I assure you, my lord, it will be no trouble for Mismagius and myself," she remarked. "I need only know how much time we shall have to prepare."

Nobunaga remained unconcerned. "The plan will proceed as soon as Lord Kenshin sends his approval. As you said, there is no sense in allowing a weakened enemy to regain its strength before facing it once more. In the meantime, I shall call upon as many of Dragnor's allies as possible. Given the gravity of the situation, I do not anticipate much difficulty in building an army."

Turning to face the door, Nobunaga glanced back over his shoulder, his face cast in deep scarlet by the setting sun's rays. "Therefore, unless you object, I shall take my leave."

As the shadows of twilight began to lengthen throughout the throne room, No felt the shift in the dynamic between them, heard the unspoken hunger in Nobunaga's voice. They had not been able to speak face-to-face like this in months, and now the tension between them was a palpable force, practically crackling whenever their eyes met. No saw the opportunity, and reached out.

Rising from her throne, No deliberately slowed her steps as she drew nearer to Nobunaga. "My lord, it is growing dark, and the autumn storms have been so temperamental these past several nights. In consideration of your safety, do you not feel it wiser to wait until morning before you depart?" Leaning in towards the man who understood so much and still so little about her, No softly murmured, "You know there is always room for you in Spectra. In a bed or in a grave."

Nobunaga's laugh was deep and sonorous, the echo dancing in the space around them as he wrapped an arm around No's waist and brought her mouth to his. This was what truly set him apart from any other man or woman No had been with - Nobunaga saw the beauty in her darkness, and fed it with his own. No had never believed that what they possessed was love, but it was a nameless intimacy far deeper than any other human relationship she had ever known. Her surroundings were a meaningless void, the only reality her demon king.

And for the first time, any notice of Okuni standing just out of sight beyond the door to the throne room escaped her mind.

* * *

The ball of light made a slight humming sound as it glided through the air, scattering the shadows on the wall of Hoshiko's room like ink spilled into water. Okuni didn't even allow them a moment to resettle before calling, "Do it again."

Hoshiko was happy to oblige, summoning another orb and flicking her wrist in the direction she wished to send it. After only a few hours, she was already moving with a graceful finesse that made it appear as though she had been doing this her entire life, and the satisfaction on her face increased with each successful strike.

After several more direct hits all in a row, Okuni held up her hand as a signal to break. "How are you feeling?" she asked. "This is still your first time trying to use this offensively, even if you're doing well. Are you sure you're not pushing yourself too hard?"

Hoshiko shook her head, flicking a stray lock of silvery white hair out of her eyes. "Actually, I don't think I've ever been better! The last time I felt this good was before..." She stopped, her face falling for a moment. "Before I left my old temple," she sighed.

Eyes brightening, the newfound fierceness in her voice returned. "It feels like I'm doing what I was meant to do."

Okuni smiled, glad to see Hoshiko happy. "Well then, if you want to keep going, I won't stop you. I think I'm turning in, though. It already looks about midnight out there, so make sure you're not at it all night."

Hoshiko nodded, already closing her eyes in concentration. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to rest. Good night!" Okuni closed the door on the sight of Hoshiko calling up another orb of white light. Unless Okuni's eyes were deceiving her, they had definitely begun glowing brighter as Hoshiko set them to this use. So far, it seemed as though Okuni's hunch had once again been correct.

As she passed Ina's room, Okuni stuck her head inside to check on her. Ina was asleep, but the sound of the door opening caused her Quagsire to glance up and wander towards Okuni. Giggling, Okuni reached into one of her pockets and fed it a handful of berries. "What are you still doing up?" she whispered. "Couldn't sleep?" Quagsire's expression, as always, remained neutral.

"Well, if you hear anything going bump in the night, it's not ghosts this time," Okuni muttered as she patted it on its head, leaving Ina to her dreams. And then she was at the doors to her own room, making a point to face away from the entrance to Lady No's chambers.

The events of the past several hours had brewed a particularly dangerous hurricane of thoughts in Okuni's mind. Had it been a solitary occurrence, Lord Nobunaga's unexpected arrival wouldn't have been enough to throw her so off balance. But coupled with the conversation she had overheard from outside the throne room, it was enough to leave Okuni feeling more than troubled, and then there was still the conveniently timely awakening of Hoshiko's power.

 _"Hoshiko."_ Okuni's concern for the priestess had gone on high alert the moment Lord Nobunaga had set foot inside Spectra's castle. Not only because of his mixed history with the Legendary Pokemon, but because Okuni knew that a warrior such as him would see Hoshiko first and foremost as a weapon if he knew what she was capable of doing. Blessed by the Legendary Pokemon or not, right now Hoshiko would be little more than cannon fodder if she were sent out into a battle such as the one Lord Nobunaga seemed to have planned.

And despite her best efforts, the obvious homesickness that Okuni had witnessed in both Ina and Hoshiko's faces over the last several days had begun affecting her as well. She had scolded herself for being ridiculous at first; how does one miss a place that hasn't existed in over a century? The village she had once called home had always been small, and as time had gone on, the families that made it up had either died out or moved on to other places. The last time Okuni had gone back, all that had been left were two empty houses, their frames stubbornly refusing to yield to the elements.

The night after her ill-fated confrontation with Tsukiyama and Yoko, Okuni's dreams had been haunted by souls she had made a point to block out. Her mother, who had taught her to dance. Her older brother, who had taught her to fight. And the one face Okuni wished she could forget, but knew she would never be able to. For how does one forget the person they sold their soul for?

Okuni had been nineteen years old, a dancer from a small village in Chrysalia, young and unaware of the world's cruelties. One day, the warlord of the time had arrived in the village, seeking the services of the local swordsmith. Among his party of attendants had been _her_ \- the warlord's daughter, and the most beautiful girl Okuni had ever seen.

The swordsmith had declared that it would take him a month to finish the commission. The warlord had left half of his men behind in the village to ensure the process proceeded smoothly - including his daughter, wishing for her to see more of the kingdom that she was supposed to one day inherit for herself.

At first, Okuni had only sought to befriend the girl. It hadn't been difficult, and soon they spent every day together, walking to the market and exploring the forests that surrounded the village. But as the weeks had passed, Okuni had realized that her feelings were changing. When she had tried to act on them though, she was rejected, and afterwards had felt the other girl slipping away from her.

Heartbroken and desperate, Okuni had recalled an old story that she heard as a child, about a spirit in the forest who would grant a wish to any who summoned it during a full moon. The following night, Okuni had followed the old legend to the letter. Then everything had gone horribly wrong.

Shaking her head, Okuni forced her recollections of that night from her mind. Even so, she felt a faint prickling sensation on her right palm, as though her skin still remembered the bite of the dagger. Okuni forcefully rubbed her hand on her shirt, refusing to let the memory overtake her anymore.

After that disaster, she had been much more careful to close her heart off. As she went about the world of humans, Okuni had always acted the same as she had in her first lifetime - carefree and cheerful, just more guarded. It wasn't a front, traversing the seventeen kingdoms was something Okuni legitimately found joy in. For the most part, the only times she needed to call up the darker part of her that had been born in the aftermath of that night was when she needed to interact with her fellow shinigami.

In the past several years, there had even been her on-and-off flings with Keiji, but while Okuni couldn't deny that she felt a kindred spirit in him, he was hardly someone she would consider throwing in the towel for. As a whole, the shinigami tended to adopt the philosophy that growing too attached to a human held no benefits - they would go through their entire lives while you remained eternally young and healthy, and if they learned the truth about you, they either grew terrified of you or endlessly pestered you with questions about death and mortality. While Okuni supposed there was the occasional exception like Motonari, she had still been warned by Setsuna that it was better to live apart from humans, a wanderer between the two realms until she could take her place in the castle of the shinigami when her service was finally fulfilled. So for over a hundred and fifty years, Okuni had more or less done exactly that. Until Spectra.

Spectra had changed everything, and Okuni still couldn't tell if it had been for better or worse. Lady No had more or less tricked Okuni into her service, and at first, it had been easy for Okuni to resent her new life. But as she was thrown completely back into the world of humanity, Okuni had begun to realize exactly how empty her existence had been.

At the first warlord conference she had accompanied Lady No to, the other junior warlords had accepted her so quickly. The longer she stayed in Spectra, the more people greeted her with familiar smiles as she made her way through the city each day. And of course, that wasn't even mentioning the enigma of Lady No herself, whom Okuni had grudgingly gained respect for throughout her first year of service. Now, Okuni had been in Spectra for over three years, and hadn't she made the conscious decision to stay?

But Spectra had also presented a challenge that Okuni had never thought to prepare herself for - the possibility of having to combine both sides of herself. Before, it had been easy; let humans know her as the bubbly dancer and her fellow shinigami as the duty-bound reaper. Both facets of her personality existed, it was just a matter of who needed to see which. Just the nature of Spectra forced both of Okuni's worlds together though, even if she had never revealed her true identity to Lady No. Sometimes, Okuni felt as though Lady No knew Okuni was putting on a show, and was challenging her to reveal that other side. Okuni wasn't quite certain how that made her feel.

And every day, there was that soft whisper in the back of her mind, reminding Okuni that this couldn't last forever. The longer she remained in Spectra, the more of a risk there was that someone would eventually realize her body wasn't aging. Seasons would pass, and all the warriors of this generation who she had come to know would fade into legend. Okuni would end up right back where she started, keeping to the shadows, allowing herself to be forgotten. All she was doing by staying in Spectra was delaying the inevitable, pretending she could somehow choose a different path for herself now.

Okuni shook her head, attempting to clear out her thoughts. She set her mind to meditating as she completed her nightly routine, focusing on the soft light that the flames she always had Larvesta light in her brazier cast throughout her room.

Try as she may to sleep, though, Okuni's past was determined to keep her company in the night. Every time she believed she was about to drift off to sleep, some new unwelcome memory would break the walls she had built around it. They ranged anywhere from completely insignificant events to life-altering ones, although Okuni began to notice that the warlord's daughter reappeared whenever her thoughts returned to the image she had seen upon peering into the throne room that evening. Lady No, pressed up against Lord Nobunaga, the sunset giving the illusion that they were both drenched in blood.

For all the stories about Lady No that were pure falsities, there were also the ones that Okuni knew held fragments of truth. The warlord of Spectra had killed for her throne, and although the manner of her predecessor's death tended to change with whoever was telling the tale, it generally wasn't a pleasant fate. The warlord of Spectra was a sorceress who held on to her power through black magic. While spiritwork wasn't quite the same thing, Okuni could understand how someone who didn't communicate with the dead may think otherwise.

The warlord of Spectra's soul was dark as the shadows she commanded, her mind twisted as the trees in the castle graveyard. Okuni always denied it whenever people attempted to pry her for details. But even on that first night in Spectra three years ago, and throughout her service, there had been moments where Okuni had seen Lady No's veil drop.

Okuni knew darkness. And she knew that there was a current of it that flowed through Lady No like a bloodstream, one that could only be understood by those who possessed it just the same. Even after a hundred and fifty years, Okuni still prayed that she would never have to feel the touch of that darkness again.

So what was the force that kept pulling her back to Lady No?

* * *

In the final hours of the night, No silently removed herself from her bed, leaving Nobunaga to his sleep. Although the effect was on her part unintentional, she and Mismagius made their way through the halls of Spectra's castle bearing quite the resemblance to some two gothic spirits from beyond the grave. No's bare feet moved soundlessly across the entry hall, and she did not pause when the doors opened, as they always seemed to, of their own accord.

Stepping onto the stone path that led to the graveyard, No tilted her head back as a cool night breeze blew its fingers through her loose hair, pulling at the silk robe she had slipped over her body. The wind came from Nixtorm, the first true indication of winter's approach. This would likely be one of the last nights for some time without a frost on the ground come morning.

Even in the low light of the crescent moon, No knew where to find the shrine. She had taken care to visit every night since Okuni's return. The rosemary perfume rested in its vial on her vanity tonight, but for this particular ritual, No did not require the assistance of any spirits. Only her own strength.

"You know what to do," she murmured to Mismagius as they entered. No retrieved the dagger she now left resting beside the onyx brazier and knelt in the center of the shrine, calling up whatever vestiges of her own spiritual energy she had to offer.

Before she could hesitate, No brought the tip of the blade to the flesh of her thumb, a soft gasp escaping her lungs at the metal's cold bite. Immediately, she pressed her thumb to the wooden floor, forcing the blood out as she painted her personal sigil - a butterfly, of course - between herself and the altar. No synchronized her wavelength with Mismagius, and as the sigil was completed, it began to glow violet. She chanted a quick incantation in the spirit language, sealing the spell without interference. It would hold over the castle for another day.

No stood, not bothering to tend to her wound. She knew it had already healed itself, and nothing would mark her skin until she repeated the ritual the next night. It was draining, and given the insolence the priestess had shown towards her in the summoning chamber, No wondered some nights why she was bothering to go through the effort of protecting her. _"Not just her,"_ No reminded herself. _"All of us."_

As long as No persisted with the same ritual, Spectra's castle would remain impenetrable by the enemy that had made such violent work of Violight and Valora. But not even No was strong enough to extend its power over the entire city, and she had already made up her mind that were an attack to occur within Spectra, Hoshiko's safety would be forfeit should her presence be the cause. There was no justifiable reason for prioritizing one priestess over No's kingdom.

Once back inside the castle, No paused at the door to her chambers, not immediately making for her bed and Nobunaga. Instead, she proceeded to her vanity, picking up her jewelry box and removing its false bottom. Within the hidden compartment was a square locket, its silver surface smoothed from years of being softly caressed by No's fingers.

She opened it up, staring down at the only picture of her mother she possessed. It was a stark contrast to No's final memories of Hideko, collapsed face-down in a snowbank with a freshly-slit throat. In this picture, Hideko's hair was piled high atop her head, woven through with pearls. Although the picture was only from the shoulders up, No could tell the kimono her mother was wearing was of fine quality as well.

Hideko had failed to see the threats facing Spectra, and it had gotten her killed. While No was grateful for her spirit's guidance now, she did not intend to make the same mistakes as her late mother. Spectra was more than No's birthright, it was her kingdom. War was coming, that much No could sense. And if she had to, she was fully prepared to do whatever it would take to defend what was hers.


	11. Chapter 11

_**Chapter 10**_

It all seemed so unfathomable to Ginchiyo. Something of this nature had been quite literally right under her feet the entire time she had been warlord of Violight, and likely even longer? Ginchiyo had never even considered that the cliffs the castle was built upon could be hollow. She could hardly believe it, even as she stood in the center of the stone cavern, listening to Aya explain her theory on the crystal's origins.

"Which, in conclusion, is why I believe such a transportation network could be reactivated. Should it prove safe, it would also solve the current issue regarding Violight's airspace security," Aya finished. "Would you like for me to demonstrate?"

While Ginchiyo could certainly see the usefulness of Aya's discovery, it left a nagging unease lingering in her mind. Ginchiyo's face must have betrayed that sense of doubt, because Aya furrowed her brow and asked, "What is it?"

"It's nothing against you, Lady Aya," Ginchiyo said. "But in Violight, we don't trust the supernatural quite as easily as you do in Illusio."

Aya frowned. "Supernatural? I would hardly call it that, Lady Ginchiyo. The abilities possessed by Illusio's crystals are believed to simply be a residual effect of the region's high Psychic Pokemon population."

"I don't see any Psychic Pokemon here, though!" Ginchiyo retorted. "Don't you think it's telling that however this crystal came to Violight, it wound up being sealed beneath the least-used part of the castle? If you ask me, I'd say whoever did so had their reasons!"

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Ginchiyo rubbed at her temples with her non-bandaged hand. "You view this as a normal part of your life, Lady Aya. But I was raised to trust only in what I can understand. And despite the fact that you live alongside these crystals, your kingdom has made no efforts beyond guesswork to learn how they actually _work_. As Warlord, I can't risk the safety of my soldiers by blindly placing my faith in this."

Ginchiyo knew Aya likely didn't mean any harm, but the look in her eyes was still one Ginchiyo was all too familiar with. _"Let her think me another superstitious swordfighter all she likes. There's a reason this object was left to be forgotten."_

More than anything else, Ginchiyo wished she could at least have Luxray at her side right now. The ladder was the only way into the cavern though, and while that presented little challenge for Aya's Froslass, there was no conceivable way to bring Luxray down. Ginchiyo could feel it prowling above the trapdoor, and realized it was picking up on her own agitation. _"Nothing's wrong,"_ she communicated through their link. _"There's just been a disagreement."_

Which was perhaps why Ginchiyo was so surprised when, after a moment, Aya admitted, "You're right." There was an audible touch of disappointment in her voice, but Aya didn't flinch as she said the words.

"Perhaps I did allow my enthusiasm to cloud my judgement. Problems are solved differently here, and I should have respected that." After a moment, she added on, "But if you're not open to this, then the issue of the blockade this enemy has formed around the kingdom does remain. This morning, a group of traders was attacked while trying to cross into Violight from Chrysalia. If such activity continues, well, the supplies Illusio delivered cannot last forever."

It was a valid point, one that Ginchiyo had lost sleep over. It almost caused her physical pain to admit, but Ginchiyo was forced to respond, "Well, no, I can't think of a solution. There's still too much about the enemy we don't know. Sending my remaining soldiers against it so soon would only turn into another slaughter, especially when we've barely been able to keep these demons out of the castle."

At least Aya had the respect to not be smug about it. "Then would you at least allow me to activate the crystal again? I have reason to believe it will respond to me."

For a moment, Ginchiyo was about to argue what reason Aya could have to believe that, but for once in her life the idea of furthering the conflict only made Ginchiyo feel weary.

"Very well," she said. "Let's see what you can do."

Aya turned to face the crystal, and Ginchiyo saw her fists clench at her side in concentration. Aya bowed her head, and for a moment, nothing happened.

The silence that filled the cavern was almost unbearable, and Ginchiyo was about to reach for Aya when the crystal began to glow a faint yellow. Ginchiyo's eyes widened as the light intensified, until the entire cavern was practically bathed in gold. The crystal that had only a minute ago resembled little more than a chipped rock was now illuminated with an admittedly impressive radiance. Aya looked up, hesitation showing on her features for the briefest moment. "Now comes the part I'm not as certain of."

She slowly approached the crystal, holding her hands up as though it was a hostile Pokemon to be placated. "Easy now," she murmured. Her movements gave Ginchiyo the impression that Aya had done something like this before, but not in a very long time.

Gradually, the ripples of light moving across the surface of the crystal spread outwards, and Aya brought her hands to within an inch of touching its surface. Was it too late to command her to stop? Ginchiyo didn't know, but she was intrigued now, even if this process still didn't seem completely natural to her.

Ginchiyo held her breath as the gleaming throne room of Illusio's castle became visible within the surface of the stone. Impossible, she wanted to say. But she had stood inside that exact room three years prior, when the Psychic kingdom had hosted the yearly warlord conference. She had seen Lord Kenshin sitting atop the throne that now sparkled in the depths of the crystal for herself. The detail was certainly convincing if this was all just some intricate trick of the light.

Aya looked back at Ginchiyo over her shoulder. "If something goes wrong, I think we'll both know." Before Ginchiyo could register the meaning of her words, Aya continued. "Run it through with your sword if you have to, but hopefully things won't come to that." Then, before Ginchiyo could stop her, Aya plunged a hand into the crystal.

* * *

The initial sensation was stronger than Aya had anticipated, and once her bare skin made contact with the crystal's surface, there was no going back. She gritted her teeth as her hand and arm were pulled inside, but overall, it wasn't entirely dissimilar to the crystals of Illusio's battlefield. That didn't stop Aya from sending up a quick prayer that she wasn't about to be sliced in half.

Aya heard both Ginchiyo and Froslass cry out before the rest of her body vanished into the crystal. For several heart-stopping moments, the world became a mad swirl of gold and pink, and Aya lost any sense of bearing. Then, the space around her gave a great heave, and she abruptly made contact with something cold, flat, and hard. Aya slowly sat up, letting out a moan as her ears rang. Then she felt a hand on her shoulder, and any remaining disorientation vanished as she sprang to her feet, prepared for a fight.

"Sister?" a male voice asked.

As Aya's senses returned to her, she realized the figure standing in front of her was Kenshin, Gallade on guard just behind him. Taking a proper look around, she recognized the thin, translucent columns that encircled the geode-like walls, the glass mosaic floor illuminated by the rays of sunlight streaming through the clear prism wall behind the throne. She had done it. She was standing in the throne room of Illusio's palace. She was home.

Looking back into the crystal column she had emerged from, Aya saw its surface now reflecting the cavern beneath Violight's castle, as well as a fuming, wide-eyed Ginchiyo. The two women locked eyes through the stone, and even without sound, Aya recognized several different swears leaving Ginchiyo's mouth. Aya glanced between Kenshin and Ginchiyo before making an "I'll be right back" gesture towards the warlord of the Electric kingdom.

"Kenshin. As you can likely tell, there have been several developments concerning Violight." Aya filled her brother in on the events surrounding her discovery of the larger crystal and the research she had been conducting on the demons as quickly as she could. When she was finished, Kenshin approached the still-glowing crystal, gazing at it with interest.

"It troubles me that I knew nothing of this either," he began. "I agree with your theory, the fact that this one remains functional means there are likely others. Unfortunately, that will have to be a matter to explore at a later date."

The scowl her brother wore sent a wave of worry through Aya. "What is it, Kenshin?"

"I have received word from an unanticipated source," Kenshin began, retrieving an envelope with a broken indigo seal from where it rested beside his throne. "This was sent by Lord Nobunaga."

Taking the letter from Kenshin's hand, Aya read through its contents twice, unsure if she was comprehending what it contained. "He plans to stage a battle here?" After a moment, she commented, "Well, at least he asks for permission now."

Looking up at Kenshin, Aya felt a sense of trepidation. "How do you mean to respond?"

Most wouldn't have been able to see the uncertainty in Kenshin's eyes, but then, most weren't his sister. Finally, Kenshin answered, "He raises several fair points."

Aya looked the letter over once more, trying to make sense of this new development. True, Illusio's battlefield was notorious for its difficulty to claim. Not even Lady Rei had succeeded at doing so; Kenshin and Aya had only elected to join her after she had proven strong enough to defeat Lord Shingen. But this wouldn't be a battle for control of the kingdom, it could potentially tip the scales of war in favor of the wrong side if any mistakes were made.

"Say that you were to agree," Aya started. "How many alliances do you feel confident that you could call upon?"

"Shingen, without a doubt," Kenshin responded. "If only because he would have a chance to prove Terrera's might on Illusio's battlefield. I would say Lady Rei as well, and if Lady Ginchiyo has warriors to spare, I doubt she would turn down an opportunity to strike back. As well as that, once word spreads, more kingdoms will take up arms than sit by while the future of Ransei is decided."

Turning that information over in her mind, Aya began to give more detailed consideration to Nobunaga's proposal. That he would call upon his generals in Spectra and Valora, Aya had little reason to doubt. While rumors had circulated during the final year of the war that Mitsuhide's alliance with Lord Motochika had created a fracture within Nobunaga's inner circle, Aya also knew that Mitsuhide would do anything to protect his young daughter. Lord Hideyoshi would be likely to throw his lot in with Nobunaga as well, meaning Viperia would be almost guaranteed to follow. Even if Lord Kotaro was something of a wild card, if one of Ransei's two ninja kingdoms became involved in the conflict, Yaksha if nothing else might send a joint delegation with Cragspur. And Pugilis would hardly wish to be upstaged by Violight, either... it really was quite ingenious. Nobunaga and Kenshin would be able to unite almost every one of the seventeen kingdoms under their banner through only politics.

It was practical. Everyone was aware this sort of conflict couldn't be delayed for much longer, and wouldn't it be better if it happened under terms dictated by Ransei's army this time? The reasonings danced around inside Aya's head, their arguments seductive.

Drawing in a deep breath, Aya handed the letter back to Kenshin. "If you believe this to be the wisest course of action, you shall always have my support."

She looked up at her brother, and was seized by a sudden rush of emotion. Aya threw her arms around Kenshin, closing her eyes as she heard the sound of his heartbeat in her ear. As the years had passed and their duties took them in separate directions, such displays of physical intimacy had grown rare between them. But in the wake of all she had seen in Violight, Aya was more grateful than ever for the presence of her brother. That they had always been there for one another, and always would be, was the one constant Aya could count on in her life.

After several moments locked together, Aya pulled away, voicing the confession she couldn't admit in front of anyone else. "Kenshin... I'm frightened. None of us have ever faced anything like this before. If this turns into war, all that has happened before now is going to seem pale in comparison."

The heels of Aya's boots clicked on the stone floor as she walked back towards the crystal that led into Violight, echoing across the large room. Turning to face Kenshin, she looked her brother directly in the eyes. "The destruction wrought by these demons has already ended so many lives. Should this battle proceed, all I ask is that your ultimate goal be the preservation of all the lives of soldiers and Pokemon still left."

"Sister, you know I view the lives of each member of Illusio's army to be as precious as my own," Kenshin stressed. "You needn't fear."

Aya paused before stepping back into the crystal, averting her eyes from her brother's concerned gaze. "It is not you whom I fear, Kenshin."

* * *

Okuni was growing worried. Nearly three days had passed since her altercation with Tsukiyama and Yoko, and within that time, she hadn't heard from Setsuna once. Despite her ambivalent relationship with the purple-haired shinigami, Okuni hated thinking that Setsuna was being punished for the action Okuni had pressured her into despite Setsuna's warnings. The fact that Okuni couldn't even recall the last time she had gone this long without some embassy from the spirit world assigning her a duty only increased her fears.

Would trying to initiate contact from her side only make the situation worse? Okuni had no way to know, but she had always been able to summon Setsuna whenever she was in need of her. And Setsuna, unlike Tsukiyama, was certainly much easier to call upon.

As she waited for the sun to set, Okuni nevertheless was forced to confront a different dilemma. Lady No had received word that morning - Lord Kenshin had agreed to Lord Nobunaga's plan. As Spectra's junior warlord, Okuni knew that she would be expected to follow Lady No into battle, but such a large-scale conflict wasn't quite what Okuni felt that she had agreed to when she had entered Lady No's service.

The battle with Lady Rei following her arrival in Spectra had been one thing. In formal skirmishes between warlords, loss of life was rarely a concern. In a battle where the enemy clearly fought with the intention to kill, however, Okuni feared that her duties as a shinigami might prove to be an interference.

 _"I can't very well just stop mid-fight and drop everything to escort every warrior who's going to be killed."_ Maybe it was a harshly pragmatic viewpoint, but when your life constantly brought you into contact with death, it was a concept you became desensitized to quickly.

 _"The least I can do is accompany Lady No to Illusio,"_ Okuni ultimately decided. _"Whatever happens after that can play out from there."_

Finally, the sky darkened to a dull purple, and the first few stars began to gleam into view. Okuni was more or less on autopilot as she lit the usual incense and drew up the necessary sigils. Scolipede and Larvesta observed her in silence from the corner of the room.

Okuni generally tried not to involve her partners in this part of her life. Even if all spirits tended to wind up in the same place, the afterlife worked differently for Pokemon. Despite the fact that Okuni had escorted countless warriors throughout her decades of service, their souls had never been accompanied by those of their partners, even if they had died together. Come to think of it, she had never even seen any of her fellow shinigami with a partner Pokemon.

The earthy scent of myrrh hovered in the air, and a smoky haze began to fill Okuni's room. She sat and took in deep breaths of it, fighting off the discomfort that the smoke left in her throat. "Setsuna," she whispered, shutting her eyes. "Where do I go from here?"

"It would seem that is the question." The deep, unwelcome voice cut into Okuni's meditation, and her eyes snapped open. Despite all her years of resenting the woman who had sealed her fate, Okuni still felt a familiar streak of fear as Yoko's lithe body appeared from the smoke.

"Have you still not learned, girl?" Yoko scolded, stepping soundlessly out of the brazier and onto the wooden floor. "When we require you, we send for you. It is not up to you to decide when you have the privilege of communicating with us. Setsuna was a fool for ever teaching you how to contact the spirit world."

Perhaps it was seeing Yoko, who always acted as though she had done Okuni some kind of favor by freeing her from one prison just to sentence her to another, set foot in Okuni's world like it was still her own. Perhaps it was hearing her dismissal of Setsuna, as though the only shinigami who had ever shown Okuni a spark of kindness was a misbehaving child, and not one of the chosen few who could walk the pathways between life and death. Perhaps Okuni was simply tired of being viewed as someone to be taken advantage of. She stood now, harnessing all the anger towards this woman that she had held inside for so long, allowing it to flood her veins.

"I asked to speak to Setsuna," she said, fists clenching at her sides. Looking up into Yoko's one eye, Okuni hissed, "Not you."

Yoko closed the gap between them in a single step, glaring at Okuni with undisguised loathing. "I should have known you wouldn't be worth the trouble. You made your mistakes and were glad to do so when you were human. Allowing you a second chance at life was a mistake."

Okuni was incredulous. "Life?" she fumed. "I wouldn't condemn anyone to the existence I spent over a century thinking I had to live because of you! Do you even know what it's like, to love? To feel anything other than sheer contempt for everything that surrounds you?"

Faintly, Okuni became aware of a breeze blowing through the room from her balcony, lifting her loose hair around her shoulders. Her voice dropped, trembling with emotion. "You almost succeeded, you know. You almost made me like you. A bitter, cold shell. But I remember how much more there is in this world. Death does not rule over life, they exist side by side. If anyone gave me a life again, it was myself, when I went out and reclaimed it!"

Yoko's slap threw her to the floor, but Okuni barely felt the impact. Locking eyes one more, she roared, "I am as much a shinigami as you!" Okuni pulled the shoulder of her yukata down, bearing the peach blossom tattooed into her skin. "And the ones like me - Setsuna and Tsukiyama - I think you fear us, _because_ we refuse to be like you. Even if it hurts us, we hold on to the memories and emotions that make us human. And try as you may, you cannot erase us. If I was a mistake, you created me. And it's too late to do anything about me now, so get used to me!"

Somewhere in her mind, Okuni was aware of the fact that she was likely mad for daring to say all of this to Yoko's face. But she had let this resentment fester within her for far too long to stop halfway, especially not when she had been given the chance to direct it all at the woman who had generated such ugliness. Okuni wanted Yoko to bear witness to all that Okuni had seen, to scream it from the top of Infinite Tower.

"Get out," Okuni whispered. The snarl on Yoko's face deepened at that, and she made to reach for her naginata. Okuni cast her eyes around the room, first wondering if she would be able to grab her parasol from where it rested by the closet, before her gaze fell on something just in front of her.

Picking up a handful of the spirit-repelling charms she had left out days earlier, Okuni screamed, "I said, get out!" She flung them outwards blindly, not quite sure what she was expecting to happen, but in that moment the script inked onto them began to glow gold. Larvesta let out a cry and raised the flames in the incense burner to a height where they barely avoided brushing the ceiling.

"You insolent -" Yoko was cut off as one of the charms hit her square in the chest, knocking her backwards into the flames. The doors to Okuni's balcony blew open, and a biting November wind howled through the room, clearing out any traces of smoke and incense. Okuni's world spun, and she gradually became aware that something wasn't right. The wind never blew when she communicated with another shinigami. Time was supposed to halt. But she had felt this hungry autumn gale throughout almost their entire exchange.

"Stop!" Okuni called out, but her plea was soft, swept up and tossed along the wind. "I said stop!" she cried, and this time, the room fell silent. The flames in her incense burner snapped out, as did Yoko's silhouette. The wind didn't relent so much as cease outright, leaving the doors to Okuni's balcony rattling listlessly together. A great fatigue suddenly overcame her, and she collapsed to her knees in a heap. What had she just done?

Okuni knew it was too much to hope that she had somehow banished Yoko from her life. She had only succeeded at sending Yoko back to the spirit world, and when next Okuni had to appear before her, it was not going to be a pleasant meeting. Okuni had proven her power, though. _"I am as much a shinigami as you,"_ she reaffirmed to herself as she shakily stood.

The sound of the door behind her opening nearly caused Okuni to jump out of her skin. "Okuni?"

Turning, Okuni at first felt relief as she was greeted by the sight of Hoshiko, not Lady No. But the expression on Hoshiko's face sent a new wave of worry through Okuni. There was concern, but a hint of accusation as well.

Stepping into the room as though sections of the floor were on fire, Hoshiko took in the sight of the scattered charms, before her eyes landed on Okuni's still-exposed shinigami tattoo. "Okuni," she cautiously began. "What was all of that I just heard?"


	12. Chapter 12

_**Chapter 11**_

Okuni stood alone in the gondola of the blimp, hand pressed to one of the glass windows. Thousands of feet below, she could make out the pass that travelers took through the mountains separating Terrera and Illusio from Ransei's eastern kingdoms. The blimp had been following that road southwest for hours, and now they were about to make the descent to the airfield of Illusio's castle.

She registered the sound of footsteps behind her, and then Hoshiko was at her side, staring straight ahead. "You weren't with Lady No or Ina, so I assumed you were probably down here," Hoshiko began, unable to conceal the hesitation in her voice.

The realization that Hoshiko must have gone to Lady No behind Okuni's back and received permission to accompany Spectra's army to Illusio had stung, for a multitude of reasons. Surely Lady No realized how much of a liability Hoshiko would be once Illusio erupted into a combat zone, even if Hoshiko didn't plan to be on the front lines. Why had she encouraged the priestess? _"Maybe I underestimated how badly Lady No wants to be rid of her,"_ Okuni grumbled.

Sighing, she kept her gaze focused on the clouds outside as she spoke. "This is about what you overheard, right?"

Hoshiko nervously tugged at a strand of her silvery white hair before replying. "I'm sorry, Okuni. I don't view you any lesser for it. I just suppose I never thought..."

"How does it work, then?" Okuni asked, interrupting her. "We - that is to say, the shinigami - we've been around for as long as Ransei has existed. Are we not part of what gets taught to acolytes at the temple?"

"No, you are," Hoshiko said. "How can I put it? It's just not quite Arceus' jurisdiction."

Pressing her lips together, Hoshiko blew onto the window, fogging up the glass. "Think of it like this," she elaborated, drawing a line down the middle of the window with her finger. "You have the human realm on one side, and the spirit realm on the other. Arceus did create both, but ultimately, its powers encompass life. So, it's going to spend more time watching over the living." She traced the character for 'life' on the right side of the window, and the character for 'death' on the left before continuing. "As a result, you could think of the first shinigami as Arceus' regent, watching over the spirit world in its place. That regent would be the Yoko you spoke of. I would guess the succession of shinigami came afterwards, as a way of ensuring the line couldn't be broken if something were to ever disrupt the spirit realm."

"Something like what's happening now?" Okuni observed.

Hoshiko shrugged. "Perhaps."

They fell into silence again, and a desperation to have the easiness of their former conversations back overwhelmed Okuni.

"If you were wondering, it's not as though I'm _dead_ ," she insisted, talking just to fill the empty space as much as she was to Hoshiko. "I still have to do things like eat and sleep. I'm just always going to look like this. All things considered, I guess that part of the deal isn't so bad."

Hoshiko laughed at that, the sound bringing a soft smile to Okuni's face. "I certainly don't see any drawbacks to that!" Looking over at Okuni, Hoshiko slowly reached out and tilted Okuni's head so that their eyes met. "For what it's worth, I still consider you my friend. You being a shinigami doesn't change the fact that you helped me, and kept helping me even once it put you in harm's way. I'm truly glad to have met you."

Okuni blinked, surprised at how deeply Hoshiko's statement affected her. "Thank you." Then, after a moment, she added on, "But, if you wouldn't mind, could you maybe keep this a secret? There's only one other person alive who knows, it's not exactly something I want to be broadcast around. I haven't even told Lady No."

There it was, that discomfort in Hoshiko's amber eyes whenever Lady No entered their discussions. "Don't worry, Okuni, I understand. Perhaps that's for the better, though."

An irrational urge to reject Hoshiko's implication rose within Okuni. "Why's that?"

Hoshiko appeared torn, as though she was debating whether or not to say any more. "Just be careful," she finally sighed, seeming to resign herself. "There's a lot more to Lady No than you think."

"And what of that do you know?" Okuni demanded, now with a touch of frustration. "I've been in her service for three years, I've figured that much out on my own. If she didn't leave you with a fantastic first impression, I really am sorry, but that doesn't make her evil! Why do you have such a grudge against her?"

"Please Okuni, I don't want to fight you on this," Hoshiko implored, clutching her hand to her chest. "I just ask that don't willingly blind yourself. Is that fair?"

Letting out a breath, Okuni relaxed her tensed muscles, that brief wave of defensiveness already ebbing. "Of course, you're right. I'm sorry." She sighed, knowing what it was that was truly bothering her. "Hoshiko, why are you coming along to Illusio? You understand what we're going to be facing, don't you? Are you certain you're ready?"

"I know," Hoshiko confirmed. "I can't fully explain why, but I need to do this. These demons are only going to keep pursuing me otherwise. Now that I have a way to fight against them, why shouldn't I?"

This was the other topic they hadn't breached again since the night they had first met. Okuni had told herself that Hoshiko's safety mattered more than her past time and time again, but if she had to be honest with herself, that excuse was beginning to wear thin. The more about Hoshiko's identity that Okuni discerned on her own, the more confused she was left. Maybe Hoshiko was descended from one of the old exorcists, maybe Hoshiko had been blessed by the Legendary Pokemon, maybe Hoshiko had already been on the run when she and Okuni met. The possibilities were all so extravagant, yet they were the only ones that made sense. Just how much of this conflict was the priestess tied to?

"I need to know, Hoshiko," Okuni appealed. "We met by chance, I can accept that. But it wasn't chance that you were being specifically targeted back in Valora, and I have a hard time believing it's chance that your abilities just so happened to choose the most convenient moment to surface. You're clearly not a normal priestess. If you're someone who needs to be protecting yourself, charging into a full-scale battle is going to be counterproductive to say the least."

Okuni saw the inner conflict raging behind Hoshiko's eyes, and hated having to pressure her in this way. "Whatever it is, I won't tell a soul," she added on reassuringly. "I swear on the Legendary Pokemon."

Hoshiko flinched at that, fists clenching at her side. "Okuni, it's truly nothing against you, but I can't tell you right now. It was probably a mistake to show you what I could do, too. If there were any other way, I wouldn't be keeping you in the dark, but this is how it has to be if you truly want me to be safe. I need you to trust me. I promise to explain everything once this conflict has ended."

Did Okuni trust Hoshiko? Most wouldn't at this point, she supposed. Her common sense was certainly telling her not to.

If Hoshiko was seeking to harm Okuni though, hadn't she had plenty of opportunities to do so? And Okuni considered her repeated decisions to defend the priestess amidst Lady No's and Ina's skepticism to have tied them together just as much as any potential cosmic fate. But even then, Hoshiko knew Okuni was sticking her neck out for her. Why was she so insistent on walking whatever path she was traveling alone?

 _"Probably for the same reasons you are,"_ a little voice mentally chided Okuni, and she couldn't argue with that.

Okuni sighed, knowing when to offer a truce. "Alright. I do trust you. But I'm going to hold you to that promise, and if the end of this conflict means the moment the dust settles on that battlefield, I'm going to be expecting real answers when it does."

"Of course," Hoshiko affirmed, the emerald flecks in her eyes glinting as she nodded. "After tomorrow, no more secrets."

* * *

The moment the boarding ramp of the blimp unfolded, Ina was on the ground, casting her eyes around the airfield for Valora's silver banner. On the dock to their left, the cerulean colors of Fontaine were snapping in the breeze, and to their right, Ina recognized Yukimura organizing a squadron of warriors from Terrera. Glad to see a familiar face, Ina and her Pokemon made their way over to the scarlet-clad warrior.

"Yukimura!" The junior warlord of Terrera looked in Ina's direction, surprise registering on his face for a moment before recognition kicked in. He finished giving orders to the last of his soldiers, then joined Ina with his Emboar and Charmeleon in tow.

"Ina, it's good to see you again," he started. "It's been too long."

"A lot has changed, hasn't it?" Ina smiled. "The last time we spoke at the warlord conference, Lord Ieyasu was still trying to bring Lord Shingen over to Lord Nobunaga's army."

"Well, we're all going to be on the same side now, that's what matters," Yukimura said. Looking around, he seemed to notice the absence of any troops accompanying Ina for the first time. "Say, where's the rest of Valora's delegation?"

"Honestly, don't you have eyes?" a new, female voice piped up from behind Ina. She whirled around, caught off guard as always by the sudden appearance of Kunoichi. How did ninjas do that?

Kunoichi's expression was teasing, and there was an obvious fondness in her voice as she addressed Yukimura. "She came off the blimp from Spectra. Probably because that's where she wound up after the Valora attack, and now you're looking for your folks, aren't you?" She turned towards Ina halfway through speaking, and it took Ina a moment to realize Kunoichi was now addressing her.

"Oh, yes."

"Dock 14. Should be sandwiched between Yaksha and Nixtorm. It looked like it was carrying a fair bit of cargo too, so Lord Tadakatsu is probably still out there." Switching back to Yukimura, Kunoichi added, "And Lord Shingen wants you up at the castle. Something about battle plans. I can wrap things up for you here if you need me to."

"Thank you, Kunoichi." Yukimura faced Ina again before departing. "I suppose I'll be seeing you around. We should try to catch up after the battle."

"Of course!" Ina replied. "I look forward to it."

As Yukimura headed in the direction of the castle, Kunoichi looked at Ina with suspicion. "So, when he said catch up..."

Realizing what Kunoichi was insinuating, Ina held up her hands. "Oh, no, it's not like that! He's all yours." She had to feel sorry for Kunoichi. Yukimura had a good heart, but he was perhaps the most oblivious man Ina had ever seen.

Kunoichi grinned, crossing her arms. "Do me a favor and tell that to the she-Beartic if you see her before I do."

Ina had witnessed enough interactions between Kunoichi and Kai at the last warlord conference to know interfering in their rivalry was a bad idea, but she still smiled and thanked Kunoichi before continuing on her way. In befriending Yukimura, Ina supposed she had also inadvertently befriended the ninja who followed his every step. Ina enjoyed both their companies, and was glad that the three of them could now interact without the knowledge that they were technically on opposite sides hanging over them.

As she approached Dock 14, Ina's first impression was that Lord Ieyasu had unloaded half the castle armory in preparation for this battle. Various crates of weapons were strewn all over the loading bay, and several different warriors were making efforts to inventory each one's individual contents. Over the din of the airfield, Ina heard a familiar voice call out, "Hammers and maces, over there! All swords, by me!"

She began to run, and Tadakatsu turned just as Ina threw her arms around him. "I'm so sorry, father," she murmured. "I didn't mean to worry you."

Tadakatsu's grip was crushing, but Ina knew her father felt just as much relief as she did. Even after Ina managed to send word to Valora, Tadakatsu still must have felt as though he had once again been unable to protect someone he loved. Reluctantly, Ina pulled out of the embrace, and looked up at her father.

"I know that I ran off, and that I should have stayed in Valora to help, and I'm sure you and Lord Ieyasu have been worried sick. Can you forgive me?" she asked, casting her eyes downwards.

"Forgive you?" Tadakatsu answered, and for a moment Ina was certain she was about to be lectured in front of Valora's entire army. Then her father knelt down, his expression softening. "You're alive. That is all that matters to me."

Gratitude flooded through Ina, and she had to blink several times before ensuring her emotions weren't about to best her. "Thank you."

Looking around, her determination was renewed, and she began to shift through the nearest crate of weapons. "So, how much preparing is there to do? Quagsire, Prinplup, and I are glad to help."

"As of now, we need to organize all of these crates by their contents," Tadakatsu instructed. "Whatever fool was in charge of loading them onto the blimp completely disregarded the instructions to group them by weapon type. Trying to distribute them has been chaos."

Ina threw herself into the work wholeheartedly, and spent the next several hours retrieving, unpacking, and handing out equipment. Faces that she recognized from the previous year's warlord conference came by with matters regarding their more specialized weapons - among other things, Ina polished Hanbei's bizarre compass-like shield, located ammunition for a rifle with a gleaming mother-of-pearl handle that belonged to Magoichi, and struck up a conversation with a cheerful Lady Nene as the Poison warlord just as cheerfully sharpened a pair of alarmingly large daggers.

Finally, as the sun began to set, there were no more tasks to be carried out. Tadakatsu called for all remaining troops on the dock to proceed inside the castle, and Ina was glad to oblige now that the temperature was steadily dropping. As she crossed the crystal bridge that separated the airfield from the castle, Ina elected not to look down through the translucent stone on the city hundreds of feet below. She wasn't even afraid of heights, but the effect was disconcerting to say the least.

Valora's castle had an industrial design, all metal and powered entirely by electricity. Spectra's castle was built in a much more traditional fashion, and was lit by the eerie ghost fires that Ina had never quite felt comfortable around. In contrast with both, Illusio's castle was like stepping inside a massive geode. Ina gasped, awestruck, as its high ceilings and shimmering walls that seemed to be illuminated from within filled her vision. The doors to the throne room were closed, meaning the warlords were likely still going over battle plans within, but Ina would have been content with just taking in the entry hall.

"It's gorgeous, isn't it?" she heard a familiar voice remark. Okuni slipped in next to Ina, eyes sparkling. "I haven't been here since before the castle changed. I had heard about the effects, but actually witnessing it in person is entirely different!"

"Yes, I've never seen anything like it," Ina marveled. "Sorry for taking off earlier, by the way. I didn't intend to come across as ungrateful, I just-"

"I understand, don't worry about it," Okuni reassured her. "You wanted to see your family again." Leaning in closer to Ina, she whispered, "You know what's got me interested? I've been seeing soldiers in armor from Violight walking around the castle, but there's no blimp from Violight on the airfield. Strange, isn't it?"

Ina agreed it was curious, but after her last attempt at mystery-solving, she was still put off from snooping around strange castles. Thankfully, Okuni didn't seem to have that idea in mind. As they proceeded to dinner, they were joined by Hoshiko, who nodded to Ina upon seeing her. Ina wasn't on as friendly terms with Hoshiko as she was with Okuni, but after what they had been through beneath Spectra's castle, Ina had trouble viewing Hoshiko as an enemy.

The atmosphere among the junior warlords was so pleasant, it was easy to forget the reason they were there. A cheer rose from the end of the table as Oichi revealed a bag containing dozens of her handmade dango and began to pass them around. Kunoichi appeared and disappeared between various groups of warriors, joining in on different conversations as she went along. Kanetsugu appeared to be giving some passionate speech, pounding his fist on the table for emphasis as Kai and Ranmaru reared back with barely concealed grins. But as Ina saw the fresh scar slashing across Muneshige's brow, barely missing his right eye, the uncomfortable reminder of what was slated to occur the following day began to weigh on her.

The tension was more visible in the older warriors - Hanzo kept casting his eyes towards the door, as though expecting a horde of demons to come charging through at any moment, and even Magoichi was acting less lecherous than usual. In the few battles she had participated in up until now, Ina had never truly been forced to confront the reality that she might be seriously injured, or worse. Looking around at all of these people and their Pokemon together, as though they had never been at war only six months earlier, it dawned on Ina that perhaps they were all coming to the same realization. Maybe treating this as only a common gathering was how they coped.

Even after dinner ended, nobody seemed particularly eager to retire and dwell on these thoughts alone in the dark. Ina saw Okuni take a look around the hall and frown. "The night's too young for the mood to be sinking so fast," Okuni declared. Facing Ina, she abruptly held out her hand. "Care for a dance?"

Taken aback, Ina felt a blush rising to her cheeks. "Here and now?" Okuni nodded, and Ina realized Okuni was completely serious. Embarrassed, Ina murmured, "Well, I've never learned how."

Unfazed, Okuni laughed. "Trust me, it's not hard. You won't be the only one."

Raising her arms into the air, Okuni clapped out a basic rhythm twice, gathering the attention of the hall's inhabitants. Swaying on the spot, she brushed her foot against the stone floor in a circle, and her Scolipede clattered its antennae together in an imitation of drums.

Cheers began to come from those who must have recognized Okuni as she retrieved her parasol from beneath the table, opening it and twirling in a blur of scarlet and gold. After about a minute or so of watching Okuni's hypnotic movements, several men and women joined her in a circle, and then it was as though a spell had been cast over the hall. The dining table was pushed aside, and some warriors must have brought instruments along with them, because bells and a flute began to ring out over the sound of clapping hands. It was infectious, and Okuni had been right in that the basic dance was easy to learn. Even Ina had little difficulty picking up when to twirl and change partners as the beat rose to a crescendo.

At some point the warlords must have adjourned for the night, because when next Ina looked over at the musicians, Lord Motochika had appeared among them and begun to strum out chords on his shamisen. The next change of partners brought her face-to-face with Lady Rei, and if Ina wasn't mistaken, even Lady No was standing on the sidelines, tapping her foot to the beat. Not every warlord was present, but enough of them joined in to visibly swell the dance's ranks.

Ina was about to step out as the tempo switched to a faster-paced song, but someone grasped her hand and pulled her further into the circle. A dizzying flurry of lights twirled in front of Ina's eyes before she recognized the face of her new partner as Yukimura. Laughing, Ina allowed herself to fall back into the syncopated rhythm. Yukimura's dancing was about as rough as her own, but together they somehow managed to avoid crushing each others' feet.

Out of the corner of her eye, Ina spotted a flash of white as Hoshiko was spun around by Okuni. Ina worked her way closer to the center of the circle throughout the next several songs, until finally, the musicians switched to a slower melody that was typically played at festivals. Sensing the final song of the night was at hand, Ina stopped for a moment to catch her breath, and Okuni took the opportunity to close in beside her.

"What did I tell you, hm?" she grinned. "Even some of your typically stoic types can't always say no to a good time." Okuni glanced to the right with a meaningful quirk of her eyebrows, and Ina followed her gaze to the unexpected sight of Lady Ginchiyo actually _dancing_ with Muneshige (somewhat begrudgingly judging by her expression, but still dancing). Ina and Okuni both looked away before the Electric warlord could catch them staring, but it had been a sight to behold.

"That's the problem with battles, I think," Okuni continued as she took Ina's hand. "Everyone treats it like things have to be doom and gloom all the time. What's so wrong with trying to forget for a couple of hours?"

"Some might let their guard down," Ina suggested as they began to sway to the beat, but in her heart, she found herself agreeing more with Okuni's philosophy. "I suppose that's their own fault though, isn't it?"

"My thoughts exactly," Okuni affirmed. The two of them gradually found a rhythm, and the fluidity of Okuni's movements helped Ina to recover her feet in spots where she faltered. Finally, the song ended with one last solo from Lord Motochika, and Ina and Okuni applauded the musicians with the rest of the remaining dancers. It was close to midnight by now, and the hall soon began to empty as warriors and their Pokemon turned in for the night. Ina was about to do the same when she caught sight of the troubled expression that had fallen over Okuni's face.

"What is it?" she asked, concerned over how quickly Okuni's mood seemed to have shifted.

Okuni blinked, and Ina could tell she had snapped her out of some deep thought. "Oh, nothing too important," Okuni insisted, waving her hand. Catching Ina's eye, she cautioned, "Just... stay safe tomorrow. You should have a long life in front of you."

Ina was slightly caught off guard by the phrasing, but she appreciated where Okuni was coming from. "Of course, you the same."

"I'll try my best," Okuni answered. Ina bid her good night and proceeded to the room she would be sharing with Oichi. The redheaded girl and her Jigglypuff were already asleep by the time Ina entered, so she changed quickly and slid into her bed with little distraction. The dancing had been fun, but Ina was exhausted. Perhaps Okuni had, in her own innovative way, ensured many less warriors would be kept awake tonight by fears of what was to come.

Closing her eyes, Ina's last thoughts were surprisingly not of any of the men or women she had interacted with today, but of Asahi. _"I want to make you proud tomorrow, mother. If you can hear me, please bless me with your strength."_

The faint trickling of water from somewhere within the castle lulled Ina to sleep, and her dreams were filled with memories of falling rain.

* * *

Aya and Kenshin stood in Kenshin's chambers, examining the map of the battlefield one final time. "Are you certain you want me to lead a vanguard from the eastern end of the field?" Aya queried. "Some might view that as stepping on Lord Nobunaga's toes."

"You'll be bringing his division more troops, so the possibility of him rejecting the formation seems slim," Kenshin said. "If all goes according to plan, both sides of Illusio's army will meet in the center of the field, anyhow. Lord Nobunaga and Lady No seem to be convinced that our numbers will draw out these demons in flocks."

"And we just blindly trust what Lord Nobunaga and _Lady No_ , of all warlords, have to say?" Aya countered. "What if we all raise our banners and march out on that battlefield tomorrow, and we're left standing there like an army of fools? I still have misgivings about the fact that there hasn't been another major attack in over a week, too. If you ask me, it feels as though we're being waited out."

Kenshin flattened the map with his hand, sighing. "I didn't say that I approve of whatever those two are planning on their own, but what could I have accused them of in front of every warlord without any proof? All of this was Lord Nobunaga's idea. If his plan isn't as concrete as it appears to be, well, by this point we've all made this bed together."

Gesturing to a line drawn in green on the map, he intoned with the same unenthusiastic manner, "The enemy will be pinned, and from there it will be a quick finish. Lord Ieyasu's division will corral any stragglers towards the ridges and disorient them."

"Well then, it seems there's no more planning to be done," Aya concluded. Like it or not, it was too late in the game now to be raising any further arguments. "We should both try to rest before morning."

She had joined the festivities in the dining hall towards the end of the night, and even though Aya had only participated in the last few dances, they had been more uptempo than she first anticipated. Nevertheless, Aya couldn't remember the last time she had enjoyed herself so much, especially when she recalled the expression on Kanetsugu's face as she pulled him into a quick waltz. Aya had never seen any one person look quite so panicked.

As she began to leave, Kenshin called back, "Actually, sister, there is one thing more." Aya turned, confused for a moment. Surely they had run through every possible scenario during the grueling strategy meeting in the throne room? Then she saw the small wrapped box in her brother's hands.

"Really, Kenshin, you shouldn't have," Aya playfully teased, taking the gift from him. "What is it, a sharpening stone for my naginata?"

Lifting the top off the box, her breath caught in her throat as she recognized the azure gleam of her pendant. It had been refashioned into a gold hairpin in the shape of a crescent moon. Gently taking it out of the box, Aya ran her fingers over the smooth metal.

"When I found your pendant on the floor of the throne room, I was confused at first," Kenshin explained. "It wouldn't be like you to leave something that important behind. After you explained your discovery of the transportation crystals, it made sense, but I decided that perhaps you would appreciate a version that's slightly more difficult to lose."

Closing her hand around the hairpin, Aya swallowed down a sudden threatening of tears. Really, what was causing all these recent bouts of emotional turmoil in regards to her brother? She hadn't even been missing the pendant for a week.

"Thank you, Kenshin," Aya said. Proceeding to the window that overlooked the city below, Aya took in her reflection, pinning the stone in her hair. "It suppose it does suit me quite nicely, doesn't it?"

"Perhaps it will keep you safe tomorrow," Kenshin suggested. If Aya didn't know better, she would say that may have been an actual joke coming from her brother. It had been so long since she had heard one from him, she wasn't entirely certain.

"Well, if I'm going to have a token, so should you," she bantered, turning back around. "We'll have to find one before this battle can get underway."

"I already have one," Kenshin stated in a matter-of-fact manner. "The Shinzo crystal."

Yes, that was right. The Shinzo crystal was traditionally handed down in Illusio from warlord to warlord, as a symbol of all they were expected to protect upon taking the position. When their father had possessed it, its light was a fiery orange. Now, it shone the same vibrant pink as the walls of the castle throne room in Kenshin's hands. And just once before, Aya had witnessed it burning the same blue as her pendant.

Aya laughed softly. "Of course, how could I have forgotten?" Kenshin did his best to avoid referencing Aya's unofficial disinheritance at the hands of their father, but the Shinzo crystal was one of the few unshakable reminders that the path she should have been set upon had been irrevocably barred to her. Brushing the matter aside, Aya proceeded to the doors of Kenshin's chambers. "Good night, Kenshin. Do try to get some sleep."

"Of course, sister."

Walking through the empty, moonlit halls gave the castle a certain added beauty, Aya felt. The moonlight tinted everything silver, and created a tranquil atmosphere that was, in Aya's opinion, impossible to replicate anywhere else. As she entered her own rooms, Aya noticed the thin layer of frost settling over the window by her bed with some surprise. Was it really so cold outside? Aya felt perfectly fine, even as she changed into a silk dressing gown much thinner than her usual attire.

She regarded the hairpin with fondness as she set it on the table beside her bed. Settling herself in her bed, Aya refused to let any more thoughts of the looming battle trouble her sleep. She and Kenshin had been born into war, tomorrow would not be their first conflict of this nature. Ransei's forces would emerge triumphant, and life would soon return to normal. Admittedly though, Aya was going to miss Ginchiyo's daily company. The warlord of Violight was blunt and abrasive on the best of days, but Aya saw much of her younger self in Ginchiyo.

Beartic was already asleep at the foot of her bed, and Froslass had vanished off to wherever Ghost Pokemon ventured during the night. Aya took in a deep breath, receiving comfort from the familiar surroundings. The storm that had been raging in her head ever since she had arrived in Violight was finally ceasing. She was home again, and no matter what happened tomorrow, her home would still be there. The life that she had created for herself in Illusio satisfied Aya, even if it was not the one she had been meant to lead.

Nothing could ever change that.


	13. Chapter 13

_**Chapter 12**_

Ina woke to find Oichi already gone and gray predawn light filling the room. As she heard the sounds of preparation for battle coming from the castle, an uneasy anticipation of what was to come settled in her stomach.

Donning her usual armor, Ina felt the urge to participate somehow. Tensions were bound to be running high inside the castle though, and she didn't want to interfere with anyone's jobs. As she pondered what options this left to her, Ina registered the unmistakable sound of someone beginning to call combat drills outside. _"Well, I suppose I can always benefit from one last practice."_

Beckoning to Quagsire and Prinplup, Ina exited the barracks and found her way to the training ground with little trouble. While many soldiers and their partners had already reported to the battlefield, several from various kingdoms were taking the opportunity to get a final round of sparring in. Ina began to search for someone to practice with when a solitary duo of warrior and Pokemon standing separate caught her eye, hacking away at a line of practice dummies. As the early morning light reflected off the warrior's helm, Ina suddenly realized who they were, even before they turned around.

Lady Ginchiyo's automatic response to seeing Ina watching her was to drop into an attack stance, her Luxray baring its fangs beside her. In that second, Ina felt herself being assessed, those stormy gray eyes gauging her for any potential weaknesses. After a moment though, Lady Ginchiyo must have recognized Ina, and her body straightened in a single practiced movement. She didn't, however, sheathe her sword.

"You're Tadakatsu's daughter, aren't you?" It wasn't phrased too friendly, but her tone wasn't hostile either, and Ina actually began to feel excited. Lady Ginchiyo was the complete embodiment of all that Ina strove to be, and Ina had looked up to her from afar ever since seeing her in person for the first time the previous year.

Bowing, Ina hurriedly said, "Yes, I am." Beside her, Prinplup puffed out its chest, and Quagsire stared at Luxray with as much interest as its face could show. "And these are my partners," Ina added on, gesturing to both Pokemon. "Would you mind if we joined you?"

"By all means," Lady Ginchiyo responded with what Ina hoped was approval. "I'm always glad to see a warrior who doesn't fear their opponent. Nobody else would come near once they recognized me. Luxray and I have had to practice on these pathetic logs instead." She scoffed, muttering something about Muneshige never being there when she actually needed him as Ina looked past her at the line of dummies that had indeed been left in poor shape. Lady Ginchiyo's sword had reduced more than one to little more than splinters and scraps of cloth.

The full realization that she was being offered an opportunity to have a practice battle with _Lady Ginchiyo_ hit Ina full force. In that moment, Ina decided the Legendary Pokemon must have been guiding her feet towards the practice field, and really, who was she to go against that?

"It would be an honor to spar with you, my lady," Ina responded, struggling to keep her excitement concealed; this was just the same as any of the dozens of mock battles she had fought back in Valora, she told herself. Lining up several yards across from Lady Ginchiyo, Ina nodded at Quagsire to step forward. Even though no real damage would be inflicted in this fight, Ina still felt more comfortable knowing the half-Ground Pokemon would be less affected by Lady Ginchiyo's Luxray.

No formal beginning to the fight was called. Ina had barely synced her wavelength with Quagsire when Luxray lunged, and in a single leap, it cleared the distance between itself and Quagsire. Before Ina could order her partner to attack, she found herself instead having to help Quagsire evade the significantly faster Electric Pokemon's attacks. What little strategy Ina had developed was quickly thrown out the window as she and Quagsire barely managed to stay one step ahead of Lady Ginchiyo.

Although Quagsire was the one physically exerting itself, Ina nevertheless felt droplets of sweat beginning to bead on her brow. It hadn't even been a minute since they had begun, but the level of concentration she needed to ensure the connection between herself and Quagsire wasn't severed was higher now than Ina had ever experienced before. _"Remember who you're fighting!"_ she chided herself. _"Did you really think Lady Ginchiyo would go easy on you?"_

Forcing herself to multitask, Ina handed some of the control over to Quagsire as she began searching for any kind of attack pattern. One of the very first lessons her father had taught her came back to her now - _"Remember, no matter how seasoned the warrior, everyone has a tell when they're about to attack. Sometimes it's a movement on the warrior's part, and sometimes it's an instinct of their Pokemon. What's important is that once you recognize it, you can better predict their next move."_ Ina was aware of hers, although in the heat of battle, she had found she simply couldn't help it. Before ordering her Pokemon to attack, she had a tendency to hitch in a deep breath, as though she was about to dive underwater.

Ina gritted her teeth as Luxray's next pounce sent a cloud of sand into her eyes. A pang of alarm shot through her when she blinked the grit away and realized Luxray was now standing between her and Quagsire. _"Trust your wavelength,"_ Ina reminded herself. Besides, Lady Ginchiyo's last attack had given her an idea.

 _"Quagsire, bring your tail down onto the ground,"_ she ordered. Luxray was too large for Ina to see Quagsire carry out the command, but the Electric Pokemon reared back as the sand covering the training ground was tossed up into its own eyes. Across the field, Ina saw Lady Ginchiyo stiffen ever so slightly.

Now strategizing in real time, Ina ordered Quagsire to slide below its larger opponent's legs. Although still partially blinded, Luxray must have been able to see enough to lash out with its paw in Quagsire's direction. _"There!"_ Luxray had dug its hind paws into the ground before lunging. _"I need to keep track of that."_

With Quagsire in her field of vision once more, Ina began to breathe easier, unconsciously matching her partner's. Luxray gave a harsh shake of its head and faced them again, narrowing its golden eyes. Ina moved with Quagsire, planting her feet into a battle stance. Unless Ina was growing disoriented, Lady Ginchiyo gave a small nod at that.

Luxray's onslaught grew even more ferocious. Faintly, Ina became aware that the few remaining soldiers on the field had stopped their own training to watch the match between her and Lady Ginchiyo. None of them were from Valora, but Ina still felt a heightened pressure to not lose. She did her best to watch Luxray's hind paws, but it often moved so quickly, Ina had to devote all her focus to keeping Quagsire out of its way.

When Luxray finally made contact with Quagsire, at first Ina didn't even register that it had even happened. Then Quagsire stumbled to the side, and Lady Ginchiyo leaned in, back in that aggressive stance. _"Try blinding it again, Quagsire!"_ Ina called, but Luxray wasn't falling for the same trick twice. It feinted to the left, then pivoted and used its hind legs to knock Quagsire down. With that, it was over.

Briefly, Ina felt a tug of disappointment. She shook it off as Quagsire stood back up, though. "Well done!" she smiled, patting her partner on the head.

The soft clinking of Lady Ginchiyo's armor brought Ina's head back up. Lady Ginchiyo was considering Ina with a neutral expression, although the light of battle hadn't entirely left her gray eyes. "Admittedly, that was better than I was expecting," she finally conceded.

Ina chose to take that as praise. "The honor was all mine, my lady!" she said. "I've never seen anyone who fights the way you do!"

"Always keep your enemy guessing," Lady Ginchiyo intoned, and Ina received the impression it was a mantra that had been drilled into her many times. The thought that Lady Ginchiyo had once been in the same position as Ina now seemed both incredible and inconceivable. _"I could really be like her someday."_

"You know," Lady Ginchiyo continued. "I'm almost sorry that Violight and Valora will be fighting on different ends of the field. I'd like to watch how you fare in a real battle."

Was Lady Ginchiyo saying that she saw potential in Ina? Before that amazing consideration could truly sink in, an ear-splitting crack rent the air. Ina and Lady Ginchiyo both whipped their heads in the direction of the castle, and Ina heard Lady Ginchiyo suck in a sharp breath. From the direction they were now facing, a low rumbling began to build.

The remaining soldiers on the field went still, identical panicked uncertainty written on all their faces. Lady Ginchiyo unsheathed her sword, and Luxray's hackles were raised. "Are you warriors of your kingdoms, or not?" Lady Ginchiyo called to them and their Pokemon. "To the battlefield, immediately!"

Ina, Quagsire, and Prinplup took off running after her. Ina didn't need to ask to know something had just gone very wrong. All that rang through her mind was Okuni's strange warning from the previous night.

 _"Please, let them all be alright,"_ Ina prayed. Lord Ieyasu, her father, Okuni, Hoshiko, Yukimura, Kunoichi, even Lady No. Ina and Lady Ginchiyo were the first to cross the bridge to the battlefield, and were the first to be thrown into the storm.

* * *

As Ina was rising, Okuni and Hoshiko were taking leave of the subdued affair that had been breakfast. Any sign of the revelry that had filled the dining hall only hours before had been wiped away by the approaching promise of violence, to the point where Okuni had felt her wavelengths with Scolipede and Larvesta being affected. Finally, she had decided to report to the battlefield ahead of time, if only to give herself something to do. As much as Okuni wanted to shake off the dread that had managed to worm its way into her thoughts, that was easier said than done.

Okuni had realized one thing during the previous night, though. Perhaps it was against the instincts her time as a shinigami had instilled in her, but she possessed too much of a connection to the warriors in that hall to abandon them. And truthfully, seeing Hoshiko's determination to fight had helped Okuni to cement the decision. After they had come so far together, it wouldn't be right to leave Hoshiko on the battlefield alone.

"Remember, stay close to me," Okuni instructed as they walked down the hall. "Once the battle starts, it's going to grow chaotic quickly. If you want a chance to fight, you'll definitely get one, but I'm the one who's done this before. And you don't strike me as the type, but sometimes warriors can get carried away their first time in a real battle."

Hoshiko's hand kept straying to the steel dagger now strapped at her hip. Okuni hoped she wouldn't have to actually use it, since the amount of time they had devoted to training with it had been roughly an hour, but it reassured her that Hoshiko would (in theory) have some line of defense if she was engaged in close combat.

"Don't worry, bloodlust isn't what's driving me," Hoshiko responded, fiddling with the hilt of the knife again. "I'm fighting for myself and for the priestesses who were killed in Valora. I don't need glory."

Inwardly, Okuni breathed a small sigh of relief at that confirmation. She hadn't really thought that Hoshiko would be in danger of succumbing to the battlefield, but hearing it spoken out loud helped set her mind at ease.

"Alright, we'll be meeting up with the rest of Spectra's troops on the eastern side of the field," Okuni continued. "Until the fighting thickens, we'll keep to the center and - oof!" As they rounded a corner, Okuni abruptly collided with another warrior.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry!" she began, then froze as she realized who she had just run into. Gesturing at Hoshiko to do the same, Okuni bowed before a surprised Lady Aya. "Apologies, my lady! I'm afraid I didn't see you coming."

Waving her hand dismissively, Lady Aya replied, "It's quite all right," although Okuni heard a slight catch in her voice. Behind Lady Aya, her Beartic was visibly on edge. Okuni knew that Lady Aya also had a Froslass as her perfect link, but it was nowhere to be seen. Strange.

"My lady, is everything alright?" Okuni asked. "Respectfully, I would have thought you would already be preparing Illusio's troops on the battlefield with Lord Kenshin."

Lady Aya paused, taking in Hoshiko's white and gold robes, then brought her gaze back to Okuni. Okuni didn't have to be a mind reader to guess what was probably running through her thoughts - what was a priestess of Arceus doing with Lady No's junior warlord?

Okuni was used to being greeted with such suspicion. Her fellow junior warlords had taken to her quickly enough, but her initial reception among them had been somewhat similar. Given all the rumors about Spectra and Lady No that she knew circulated around, Okuni tried not to be too bothered by it, especially since she had once believed them herself.

Lady Aya was hardly the superstitious type, though. Then again, it was common knowledge among the warlords that there was no lost love between her and Lady No. Okuni didn't really understand what about Lady Aya that Lady No so disliked, but maybe it went back to before Okuni had entered her service. Whatever the case, Hoshiko must have sensed the spike in tension, because she stepped forward and lowered her head before Lady Aya. "My lady, if there is any sort of assistance we may offer you, we gladly do so. After all, it is the duty of both priestesses and junior warlords to aid the rulers of Ransei."

A small scoff came from Lady Aya at that, but it seemed directed more towards herself than Hoshiko. She looked Hoshiko over once more, as though trying to discern whether or not she was a real priestess, then sighed.

"Ideally, I should be," Lady Aya admitted. "Most of the other warlords have been assembling their troops since dawn, but I've had a different set of problems this morning. My link with Froslass feels... compromised. On top of that, an extremely important item that I recovered from the site of the Violight attack went missing sometime in the night." Pausing, she drew in a deep breath. "I fear we may be facing some sort of sabotage."

 _"Sabotage?"_ The implication of what Lady Aya was saying cast a chill over Okuni, and looking at Hoshiko, Okuni saw a similar dread mirrored in her amber eyes. "Do you think the enemy may have gotten inside the castle?"

Lady Aya nodded. "I pray such isn't the case, but until this artifact is accounted for, I can't believe that it disappearing on the eve of a battle with its makers is coincidental."

"What is the nature of this artifact?" Hoshiko stepped in. "If it has any sort of unnatural aura like the one these demons possess, priestesses are trained to detect as much. We could help you locate it."

Lady Aya was silent for a moment, and Okuni guessed she was asking Beartic for its input. Finally, Lady Aya seemed to decide there was nothing for her to lose. "A shard of a dagger carried by a demon. I kept it stored away because of the energy it gave off, but I imagine locating it wouldn't be difficult for someone trained in the practice."

"That's not an entirely bad thing," Hoshiko said. "If whoever took it was able to find it off its energy alone, then I certainly can."

Hoshiko closed her eyes and lowered her head, slowing her breathing. The only other time Okuni had seen her like this had been when Hoshiko had first summoned the lights. In both that moment and this, another side of her emerged, something more mysterious and powerful than Okuni felt she could ever possibly understand. Hoshiko was her friend, but before they had met, she had been trained her entire life for duties such as this. Okuni briefly wondered if any human could learn how to detect supernatural energies. It certainly seemed like it would be a useful skill in her own line of work.

Letting out a small gasp, Hoshiko said, "There's definitely something in the castle that isn't right."

"Where?" Lady Aya pressed. "Can you tell what part of the castle?"

Bringing her head back up, Hoshiko murmured softly, "That's odd." Her eyelids fluttered, and then she righted herself, shaking her head. "I feel a strong dark energy, but it's coming from above us. As in, above the castle."

Lady Aya seemed momentarily just as puzzled by this information as Okuni felt, but then a light went on behind her eyes. "What about the roof? It's supposed to be secured at night by the royal guard, but if there was only one demon, it could have managed to slip them by."

Hoshiko nodded. "That makes sense. Let's see."

The three of them moved urgently through the castle with their Pokemon, Lady Aya taking the lead as they raced up a translucent staircase. Under different circumstances, the opportunity to explore more of the castle would have thrilled Okuni. Both the building itself and its surrounding grounds were much larger than Spectra's, and the style of architecture was unlike anything else in Ransei, even without the added ornamentation of crystals.

After four flights of stairs though, Hoshiko was visibly winded, and even Okuni was beginning to feel short of breath. On the other hand, Lady Aya didn't seem any worse for wear, and continued motioning them onward as they emerged into a less decorated corridor. "The staircase to the roof is at the end of the hall. It appeared alongside everything else."

They passed a doorway that Okuni suspected led to Lord Kenshin's rooms, then proceeded up a simpler staircase that opened directly onto the roof. Despite the lack of any door, Okuni felt no change in temperature until she was completely outside, and the November wind began to pull at her hair. As her eyes adjusted to the predawn light, Okuni caught her breath at the view.

In all four directions, the forests and rivers that stretched beyond Illusio's city unfolded before them like a cartographer's rendition of the region. To the northeast, the gray mountains that marked the border with Avia rose out of the earth, and Okuni had no doubt that if she turned southward, she would be able to make out the beginnings of Terrera's desert. Everything was cast in a hazy purple light, still caught halfway between night and day.

To their immediate north and west, two more enormous crystals floated level with the castle, connected to the main building by great glass-like bridges. Respectively, they housed the airfield and the battlefield. The latter was swarming with troops from all seventeen kingdoms as battle formations were beginning to take shape, and even from this high up, Okuni could hear shouting.

Hoshiko emerged next to her, tucking a strand of silvery white hair behind her ear as the wind sent it blowing around her. "I didn't think there was a view like this in Ransei anywhere other than Dragnor," Hoshiko breathed, and Okuni was reminded just how little of Ransei Hoshiko had actually seen. "It makes me feel…"

"Don't lose focus," Lady Aya's voice came from the stairway, their Pokemon just behind her. "The view is remarkable, I know, but we're here for other purposes. Look around for anything out of place. The fact that all four of the guards who were supposed to be stationed here last night are missing already has me concerned."

Okuni gripped the handle of her parasol tighter at that. There wasn't any sign of a fight that she could see, but that only cast an unwelcome sense of eerieness over the situation. Beside her, Hoshiko refocused, and instantly let out a gasp as though she had been sucker-punched. " _Something_ is definitely here," she repeated.

Slowly creeping towards the southern end of the roof, Okuni made sure to keep alert. With the exception of Valora several days earlier, the last time she had come face to face with a demon had been close to thirty years ago. The experience wasn't something one easily forgot, though. Okuni knew what to look for - a sudden inexplicable desire to cause harm, the sensation of something breathing down her neck, and a smell like that of a rotting corpse were all telltale. But she wasn't picking any of that up now, and neither Scolipede nor Larvesta seemed perturbed either.

Then, in the corner of her eye, a sudden flicker of movement caught Okuni's attention. Turning in its direction, she narrowed her eyes. The western end of the roof was still shadowed by twilight, its smooth surface the same unlit purple as the sky. It could have been Okuni's nerves were causing her to see things that weren't there - but no, there was a slight shimmer to a section of what was seemingly only air. _"Found you."_

If she attempted to alert Hoshiko or Lady Aya, there was no telling what this other entity might do, and engaging it directly would likely cause it to strike back violently. But with her Pokemon right behind her, it wasn't as though Okuni would be approaching it on her own, and the distance wasn't much for Lady Aya and Hoshiko to cover if a confrontation were to occur. Her decision made, Okuni drew closer, pretending to examine some point on the horizon.

She held her breath in her chest as she walked directly past the other presence. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as Okuni felt the heightened sense of _wrongness_ around that pocket of space... and her eyes widened as the wind changed direction and blew a familiar perfume her way. _"It can't be."_

"Okuni, is something wrong?" she heard Hoshiko call out, and the glamoured patch of air warped visibly, as though whoever was concealed beneath it was about to run. _"Not on my watch,"_ Okuni grimaced.

Snapping her hand out, she plunged it through the glamour's thin barrier, ignoring the way the spirit magic set her skin crawling. Her fingers closed around what was unmistakably human skin, and Scolipede launched a powder in the direction Okuni had pointed. The glamour briefly flickered before dropping entirely, and in its place was a coughing Lady No, Mismagius at her side. Lady No's wrist was held in Okuni's grasp, and in her left hand was a sinister-looking shard of black metal.

Once her throat was clear of the powder, Lady No met eyes with Okuni, an unspoken challenge for Okuni to continue. As Hoshiko and Lady Aya came racing over, the latter's face broke into undisguised disdain at the sight of the Ghost warlord. "For your sake, Lady No, I pray you have an honest explanation for both your presence here and your possession of that object."

"Nothing I can say or do would satisfy you, old ghost, as we both know," Lady No countered, her normally rich voice still raspy from the powder. "But just this once, do try to put aside your bias against me. I am acting in the interests of Ransei's army, under Nobunaga's orders."

"And why do I find it difficult to believe that?" Lady Aya remarked. "Everything you've ever claimed to have done in the interest of Spectra or Lord Nobunaga has always held something for yourself to gain." Her eyes went back to the shard of metal clutched in Lady No's hand. "You've never known when to draw back from the flame."

Lady No laughed at that. "You think this is me trying to steal some sort of power from you? Don't think too highly of yourself, _my lady_. You wouldn't have been able to do anything with this if it had come with instructions how. All I've done is re-tailor it to benefit our purposes. Which is why I had to come up here and send those guards off. The moonlight made the task easier." Turning her head towards Okuni, Lady No continued dryly, "I could better explain if you would kindly let go of me. And that is an order."

Glancing over at Lady Aya, Okuni was grateful when she nodded for Okuni to release Lady No. "Allow me to be clear, attempt any more tricks with your Mismagius and I will gladly bring you before Kenshin as a prisoner," Lady Aya warned.

"Well, I might be a touch more agreeable if you would cease this interrogation," Lady No answered, and beneath her indifferent exterior, Okuni could sense Lady No's growing irritation. Her violet eyes moved beyond Okuni and landed on Hoshiko, and Okuni mentally cursed as Lady No's expression darkened. Hopefully, Hoshiko would have the sense to stay off Lady No's radar for now.

"No doubt you'll find objections to raise, but allow me to state my case," Lady No continued. "The demons that attacked Violight left behind a multitude of traces of their presence." She dangled the black shard from her hand, and Okuni realized it had been re-fashioned into some sort of pendulum.

"With such a remnant in the correct person's possession, any magic it holds can be turned against the original wielder. I assumed some would have likely fallen into Lady Ginchiyo's hands, but frankly, I try to avoid crossing that woman whenever possible. Luckily for me, it turned out I needn't bother. Something with much more substance was already inside this castle." As if it possessed its own mind, the shard of metal seemed to gleam brighter at that.

"I'm so glad to know you hold no such qualms about crossing me," Lady Aya remarked.

"I always make exceptions for you, my lady," Lady No assured her in the dangerous tone she normally only used with Lord Nobunaga. "Now, where was I? Ah, yes. Mismagius and I reworked the magic already contained within the obsidian, and were able to create a sort of homing device. Once it is activated on the battlefield, whoever wields it - in this case, Nobunaga - will have complete control over where these demons spawn, and Ransei's army will be directed as such. Really, the hardest part was actually acquiring a suitable conductor for the magic involved."

"Assuming you've been entirely truthful up until now, that's all very well and good," Lady Aya said, unfazed despite the condescension that had begun to slip into Lady No's tone. "But you still haven't explained how that object managed to travel from my rooms to your hand."

Lady No sighed. "Well, thanks to _that_ -" She jerked her head in the direction of Lady Aya's Beartic - "I couldn't simply walk into your quarters and take it, and kindly don't try to pretend you would have only given it to me had I asked. Not with our six years of... history. You can hardly blame me for having to take a different approach."

At first, Okuni couldn't tell what Lady No meant by that, but it clearly meant something to Lady Aya. A look of sheer fury crossed her face, frightening enough that Okuni instinctively stepped back. "You forced Froslass to bring it to you. That's the reason I felt something wrong with our link this morning."

"Oh, did I interfere with your wavelength?" Lady No inquired. "Well, if it's any consolation, that wasn't my goal. I don't find myself having to take control of Ghost Pokemon that are linked with other warriors often. I let your Froslass go the moment I had what I needed, which didn't take long at all, so I suspect it will wear off shortly."

Okuni couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had never fooled herself into believing that Lady No wasn't ruthless, but deliberately hijacking another warrior's wavelength with their partner? Lady No might as well have broken off a piece of Lady Aya's soul. Clearly, a similar train of thought was running through Lady Aya's mind.

"Get out of my sight," Lady Aya snarled. "And the moment this battle is over, I want you out of Illusio."

Lady No's only response to that was a soft laugh at Lady Aya's agitation, but she began to proceed towards the staircase leading back into the castle. For a moment, Okuni made to follow her out of instinct - until she turned to gesture for her Pokemon and caught sight of Hoshiko. The priestess met Okuni's gaze, her eyes disbelieving. As if she could sense the course Okuni had been planning to take, Hoshiko shook her head, and her words from the blimp echoed in Okuni's mind. " _How well do you truly know Lady No, Okuni?"_

Rooted to the spot by the silent imploring of those amber eyes, Okuni desperately looked to Lady Aya for any sort of reaction. But Lady Aya had only focus for Lady No, staring daggers at her back. "Wait," Lady Aya called out, her voice dangerously low.

Watching as Lady Aya and Beartic strode across the roof to meet Lady No, Okuni and Hoshiko couldn't make out the next several words that were spoken between them. Had Lady No even noticed Okuni's indecision? Had she cared?

Even from a distance, Lady Aya's movements grew sharper and stiffer as she continued to address Lady No, who had clearly said something to more visibly agitate her. It amazed Okuni that Lady No didn't balk at all in the face of that barely-contained fury. Then Lady Aya held out her hand expectantly, and Okuni realized with a crashing sense of dread what it was that she wanted from Lady No.

Hoshiko seemed to understand too, and a panicked urgency entered her voice. "Okuni, make her see sense," she warned. Okuni couldn't tell if Hoshiko was referring to Lady Aya or Lady No, but she fought past the desire to vanish on the spot and began walking towards the two women. How she planned to break them up, Okuni wasn't exactly sure, but she had witnessed enough of the past exchanges between Lady Aya and Lady No to know that the tension in the air wasn't going to hold for much longer without one of them breaking.

She opened her mouth to call out to Lady No as it happened. Lady No finally turned to acknowledge Okuni's presence, and Lady Aya took advantage of the distraction, lunging for the pendulum swinging from Lady No's hand. Her fingers brushed the metal just as Lady No snapped her hand up, and the pendulum soared into the air, clattering on the surface of the rooftop several yards from where Okuni stood. Okuni wasn't sure if the voice that roared in her head to retrieve it was her own or one of the other women.

Okuni sprinted towards where the pendulum now lay, such a deep black that it appeared a hole on the dawn-lit crystal of the rooftop. She was about to dive for it when a cloud of purple surrounded the shard, and Mismagius materialized in her way. Mismagius scooped the pendulum up with one of the tendrils of its cape, and Okuni could only watch helplessly, not foolish enough to order Scolipede or Larvesta to attack her lady's partner. However, Lady Aya held no such hesitations.

Beartic slammed into the currently corporeal Mismagius in a white blur, sending it sliding across the rooftop and the pendulum skittering away once more. Lady Aya and Lady No ordered both of their partners to retrieve it at the same time, and above the fight, Okuni became aware of Hoshiko calling for all three of them to stop.

Despite having taken the first blow, Mismagius was able to teleport across the rooftop once more, reaching the pendulum in the same moment as Beartic. In the instant that both Pokemon reached for the black shard, Okuni swore time slowed to a halt. How else could she have witnessed in such clear detail as Mismagius launched a Shadow Ball towards the Beartic's paw as Beartic made to slam it down over the pendulum? And when Beartic jerkily pulled back as Lady Aya likely ordered it to defend itself, there was nothing to block the metal from taking the full force of the attack.

For a moment, everyone on the roof held their breath as the Shadow Ball slammed into the pendulum, cleaving it in two. Along where both pieces had broken, they began to glow a sinister deep red. Okuni dared a sideways glance at Lady No, and her fear intensified tenfold as she realized that true, undisguised panic was etched across Lady No's face. Hoshiko ran up beside Okuni, muttering, "No, please, not here..."

A grating, murky voice that felt like claws down Okuni's spine filled the air. _"What fool has opened a doorway for me?"_

The two shards of the pendulum folded in on themselves, and a black vortex began to take form between them. Lady No and Hoshiko moved together as a demon with a skeletal face and black, archaic-looking armor appeared. Its head snapped in Hoshiko's direction, and Okuni's blood ran cold as it let out a predatory hiss. _"You have been hiding from my lady for long enough. She wants what you stole from her."_

"As I recall, it was you who attempted to steal from me," Hoshiko challenged the demon, holding her dagger out in front of her. "And this time, you'll find I'm much more prepared for you."

The sound the demon made at that couldn't be called a laugh. It was a wet, guttural sound that made Okuni want to clap her hands over her ears. She knew she should call out to Scolipede or Larvesta, order them to do something. But the memories were coming back to her, fear stealing any of her sense. She could not go back there now. But was it her imagination, or was that portal growing larger, bringing with it the scent of those cursed flowers blowing on the breeze?

 _"Did you truly think we would be unprepared for this?"_ the demon asked, now turning towards Lady Aya. _"She has been waiting to see if the kingdoms would present a greater challenge than last time. Consider yourselves fortunate."_ Before any of them could move, the demon flung its arms out, and a terrible cracking sound reverberated around them, as though the sky itself was tearing apart. _"You shall be annihilated facing the greatest forces of hell!"_

As more vortexes began to appear surrounding the roof, Okuni watched in horror as each began to disgorge its own force of demons, who charged towards the battlefield below with glee. Cries of alarm from sentries reached her ears, but the troops assembled below still had far too little time to prepare. All the careful planning of the previous day was about to be for naught.

With Okuni, Lady Aya, and Lady No distracted, the demon turned its attention back to Hoshiko. A cry of alarm from Hoshiko, followed by the flash of one of her lights flying from her hand reminded Okuni of the threat, and she tore her eyes from the battlefield to join the priestess, parasol at the ready. The light had struck a portion of the demon's arm unprotected by its armor, and it let out a pained growl. _"I was right!"_ Okuni thought triumphantly.

Hoshiko spun, preparing to send another beam of exorcist's light the demon's way, and Okuni synced her wavelength with Larvesta's. _"First things first, beat this one back to where it came from."_ Looking past the demon to Lady Aya and Lady No, she shouted, "Get to the battlefield and rally your troops!"

Whether or not they listened, Okuni didn't have any more time to see. _"Larvesta, attack!"_

Her partner spun towards the demon, cloaked in flames, and Hoshiko shot three more silvery-white orbs its way as well. The demon countered with a blast of its own magic, dissipating Hoshiko's lights in midair but not being able to block Larvesta from making contact with its side. It gave an angry howl as its armor began to smoke, and Okuni realized with a churn of her stomach that the metal had been welded to its flesh by the heat of the flames.

Okuni and Hoshiko engaged the demon in a flurry of movement and explosions of light. It was strong, stronger than the last one Okuni had fought. She was beginning to understand why Setsuna and the other shinigami had faced so much trouble sealing its brethren away. In order to kill it, Okuni was going to have to take a risk.

In one deft movement, she twisted the tip of her parasol's handle free, and the gleaming metal dagger normally hidden by the parasol's hilt was revealed. Okuni waited until Hoshiko's next light hit its mark, and charged while the demon was recoiling.

Letting loose a ragged shout, Okuni came within inches of the demon's snarling face, and plunged the dagger directly into its exposed throat. Tearing the blade back out, Okuni dropped into a roll and threw herself out of the way as the demon clawed at where she had been a moment earlier. Okuni tried not to shudder as she realized it had actually grown claws.

Managing another strike at the back of the demon's leg, Okuni jumped back up as it fell to one knee. _"Now!"_ she thought, making eye contact with Hoshiko. The priestess nodded and brought her hands together, summoning an orb of light that was half the size of Okuni, and sent it directly towards the fallen demon.

What came next happened so quickly, Okuni truly didn't think there was any way they could have prevented it. Victory had been theirs, and in the moment of the kill, both of them lowered their defenses. The demon's eyes sparked with black fire, and it brought up its hand, a spear of shadow and bone forming in its palm. Hurling it forward, the demon absorbed the light and exploded.

And in that same moment, the spear pierced through Hoshiko's unarmored chest. As the demon dissolved into smoke, its final laugh was drowned out by Okuni's scream, and Hoshiko collapsing in a blur of white and scarlet.


	14. Chapter 14

_**Chapter 13**_

Okuni ran to Hoshiko's side in an instant, falling to her knees as she saw the spear embedded in Hoshiko's chest up close. "No, no, no!" Okuni muttered, frantically attempting to examine the injury. Her hands were stained crimson within moments. How was there already so much blood?

Hoshiko's eyes fluttered open, and at the same time, a strange pulse of silver light began to radiate from her headdress. Hoshiko gave a cry of pain as some dark energy laced up the shaft of the spear, seeming to absorb that light as it sent her body into a violent spasm. Was it Okuni's imagination, or had a thin coat of rust formed over the circlet in the aftermath?

"Okuni..." Hoshiko panted upon falling still. "You need to - pull it out."

"What?" Okuni protested. "That will only make you lose more blood!"

"Doesn't - matter," Hoshiko groaned. "The spear... please."

Unable to see her friend in any more pain, Okuni forced the tears threatening to well behind her eyes back and wrapped both hands around the hilt of the spear. Hoshiko let out a gasp as it was pulled back through her chest, and by the time Okuni set the spear down beside her, she was struggling to keep her hands from shaking. The moment the spear was free, Hoshiko's headdress dissolved, crumbling into ash that scattered through her hair.

Grasping towards Okuni, Hoshiko met her eyes with an intensity that Okuni had only seen rivaled once - in Lady Rei, just before she had ascended Infinite Tower.

"Listen to me, Okuni. I don't have much time. You and I both know it's the truth, and there is something I need you to do for me." Hoshiko was interrupted by another fit that left her coughing up blood, but when it was over, she continued without missing a beat. "It wasn't supposed to be like this. Please know that. I wanted to keep you out of it, for you already carry such a heavy burden. But now, given the circumstances, you are the only one I can entrust this to."

Out of the corner of her eye, Okuni could see the portals surrounding the rooftop closing, their job of unleashing their hordes of darkness upon the soldiers and warlords below completed. She should be moving, charging onto the battlefield to help her friends. But she was rooted to the spot.

"What are you talking about, Hoshiko? You're not making any sense!" Was blood loss causing the priestess to grow delirious? As gently as she could, Okuni pulled Hoshiko onto her lap, trying to look anywhere but at the scarlet stain spreading down the front of her friend's robes.

Hoshiko abruptly reached up, stroking Okuni's cheek with her hand. "Allow me to show you. Perhaps then you will better understand." Blinking, she drew a painful breath in, then re-opened her eyes. Those eyes, that were now fathomless pools of green, two shining emeralds boring into Okuni's soul. Okuni felt herself being drawn into them, and suddenly, she realized she was now seeing through them as Hoshiko. But... what was it that she was seeing?

 _Nothing. Floating in a great void. Something awoke within her, and she raised her head, surrounded by soft silver light._

 _They knelt before her, the chosen warriors, called upon to raise a new land from their victory. Seventeen in total. Was it too much? No, she decided, better to split the power this many ways. She could already foresee that some would forge nobler legacies with it than others. One man stepped forward, jet black lightning bolts encircled in ink around his wrists. Something for him to honor that, she thought._

 _So much time spent, watching their descendants from a distance. When had the legends grown so twisted? When had unification become synonymous with bloodshed? Was this all because of them, their greed, their lust, or because of her? That she could not answer the question left her with a strange sorrow._

 _Occasionally, there were the warriors who became more, the legends who inspired new generations to keep fighting. Those, she was proud to call hers, marking them as such. All but one. A thousand years later, it was a tragedy she still regretted._

 _Finally, something called out to her. She sent her answer, a thin beam of silver light, piercing the black horizon and landing atop that tower. It was a girl who stood before her, a girl displaying a crest of cherry blossoms on her armor, with an Espeon at her side. But there was a second voice as well - she turned, and saw him, the black dragon atop his keep. The ambition she felt within both of them was more similar than she suspected they realized. And the dragon did indeed aspire to great goals. But the purposes for which they had called to her... that was the distinction._

 _It was the same call she meant to answer that night, six months later. What reason could she have held to suspect? And so once more, she descended from the clouds above Dragnor, right into the snare of the enemy she had overlooked. They drove daggers into her sides the moment she set down, shadows pinning her form, sucking all her power out of her. Any cry for help she might have raised was drowned out by the storm raging around them. She was helpless when the general appeared before her, an ebony tantō clutched in her hands that she raised high for the final blow. One last burst of strength emerged from somewhere deep inside of her, and she threw herself upwards, the blade of the knife missing her heart but still managing to cleave into her chest. The pain was blinding..._

 _Scattered. All her strength went into holding onto what reserves of her power were left. Taking that, crafting a form she could use to escape. Where she would go, she was not sure. Aurora, the girl with the cherry blossom armor, that was too far. But over the kingdom of ghosts, a meteor shower. The perfect disguise._

 _In a burst of silver light, she was reborn beneath the pines of the haunted forest. And as the stars flickered out, the girl now called Hoshiko awoke._

Okuni was thrust back into the present as quickly as that stream of images had flashed through her mind. No. There had to be some other explanation.

"You do see, then," Hoshiko breathed, as the realization broke across Okuni's features. "And you know why the power must be passed on, before it can fall into that woman's... no, that _thing's_ hands. For with it, the destruction she could cause... I fear she already possesses too much."

Raising her other arm, Hoshiko held Okuni's face in her hands, tears welling in her amber eyes. "Thank you, truly, for showing me all the good that still dwells in Ransei," Hoshiko whispered. "And thank you for being my friend. I wish we could have had a thousand years more."

"Don't say that!" Okuni insisted. "Please! I can't lose you now!"

Hoshiko's expression hardened, and that silver glow entered her eyes. "Then take this from me."

Before Okuni could move, Hoshiko brought her head up and kissed her. It was not from passion, and there was no desperate lover's gesture in the act. But as Hoshiko's lips brushed hers, Okuni felt it - a transfer of something between them, the faintest white light leaving Hoshiko's body and entering her own.

Collapsing into Okuni's arms, Hoshiko fell limp as a rag doll. Light breaths still lifted her chest, but they were growing weaker as the blood began to pool beneath her, staining her snowy white hair. "What I can give... is now yours," she shakily gasped. Her eyes clouded over, and even those green flecks that had always been so striking before now dulled. Those eyes met Okuni's one final time. "Use it for tomorrow."

And with that, she fell still.

At first Okuni backed away, refusing to believe the cold that met her fingertips when she tried to take Hoshiko's hand. All around her, it was as though the rest of the world had been cut off, and all there was in her entire existence was her and the empty husk that had been her friend.

The first tears fell from her eyes without Okuni even realizing it, until she saw them land on Hoshiko's robes, gray droplets dotting the white fabric. Stiffly, Okuni reached out and slid Hoshiko's eyes closed. And with that action, the full gravity of what had just occurred struck her.

Hoshiko was the Legendary Pokemon. And now she was dead.

* * *

It was Violight all over again. Were it not for the change in setting, Ginchiyo would have sworn she had been sent back in time as she once more faced an onslaught of all hell's denizens. Like before, they came from holes that tore open in the sky, and the first wave had already reached the ground by the time Ginchiyo and Luxray set foot on the battlefield. But this time, Ginchiyo was ready.

Within moments, she and Luxray were moving as one force, charging towards the nearest cluster of demons. Ginchiyo's sword was an extension of her arm, and between its blade and Luxray's electricity, those first foes fell within moments. Afterwards, Ginchiyo scanned her surroundings as quickly as she could, trying to gain sense of her location. Muneshige was supposed to be on the western end of the field with the rest of Violight's troops, as part of Lord Kenshin's battalion. Which meant that if Ginchiyo wanted to join her soldiers, she was going to have to fight her way through that entire sea of enemies. So be it.

Making quick work of any enemies foolish enough to turn their backs to her, Ginchiyo allowed herself to fall completely into the violence. She had not been trained to separate herself from her surroundings on the battlefield - on the contrary, she could hear every exhalation of breath that left her body, feel the give of her enemies' flesh and bone with each slice of her sword. As the adrenaline surging through her reached its peak, Ginchiyo could no longer even discern whether she was watching her foes fall as herself or through Luxray's eyes. All their time spent as partners, they had trained to become this single unit in the heat of battle. Luxray's power truly became her own, and Ginchiyo swore her own body moved quicker as a result.

It had been years since the last time she had truly been able to fight with all the strength she possessed. Not that Ginchiyo hadn't gained satisfaction from traditional battles over Violight like the one with Lady Rei, and she was hardly someone like Lady No who relished bloodshed. Freeing herself of all restraint, though - there was something liberating in it. For while she had accepted the title of warlord without complaint, like most of her ancestors, Ginchiyo had always felt her true calling on the battlefield.

As she exploded through another cluster of demons, a trio of arrows with green fletching soared past her, meaning Lord Motonari was somewhere close by. Ginchiyo saw his Serperior weaving between enemies a moment later, knocking several down at once with a sweep of its Leaf Blade-sharpened tail. In the same breath, a ninja wearing the colors of Yaksha appeared beside her, releasing several silver throwing stars from her palms into the fray before vanishing once more. After the initial surprise of the attack, it seemed that the forces of the kingdoms were beginning to regroup.

This revitalized her, and Ginchiyo shook off the glancing blows she had received thus far, switching her stance into one better suited for fast-paced combat. _"Let's go, Luxray!"_ she called to her partner. Luxray answered with another burst of sparks from its coat. Ginchiyo sprinted forward, stabbing her sword into a demon that had pinned a warrior from Avia to the ground. "Are you alright?" Ginchiyo asked the man as he scrambled upwards, a Pidgeotto alighting at his side.

"Yes, my lady!" the man answered. "Thank you!" Ginchiyo nodded in response before returning to the fray. It wasn't much longer before a familiar battle cry registered in her ears above the din, followed by the unmistakable sound of a hammer swinging down onto some unfortunate foe's head.

Given his considerable height, Yoshihiro spotted her first. "About damn time you showed up!" he roared upon Ginchiyo cleaving through the final demons separating them. "I was beginning to think you'd sent that junior warlord of yours to do all your work for you!"

Yoshihiro stood back-to-back with his Conkeldurr, who was occupied with swinging both of its stone columns in an arc around them. Any demons unfortunate enough to avoid colliding with either one met their end from Lord Yoshihiro's hammer moments later. Ginchiyo spared a moment to eye the setup, one she had witnessed her rival execute on the battlefield before, to great effectiveness, firsthand. "Have you had to move at all this entire time?"

"When you're where you're supposed to be and the enemy is fine with coming to you, why bother?" Yoshihiro answered. "You know, it's a shame these things vanish when you take them out. Otherwise we could compare kills." Another demon slid past Conkeldurr, only to be immediately pounded into the ground by Yoshihiro. "Then you'd quit that high and mighty attitude!"

"That's only going away when I'm dead and in the ground," Ginchiyo declared, striking at a gap in the circle that had formed around them. In the first year that had followed her coronation, the rivalry between herself and Yoshihiro had been a truly volatile one. Ginchiyo had been younger, eager to prove herself, and still raw over her father's death. She had since come to accept the circumstances of it - Dosetsu had died a warrior, in an honest fight, the best way for any Tachibana to die. But even if time had managed to slightly reduce the hostility of her interactions with Yoshihiro, the battlefield brought out in both of them, simply put, a desire to show off.

Forcing the instincts wanting her to dive into the chaos with no rhyme or reason back, Ginchiyo opted for the more stylized technique of swordplay that she had learned from one of her tutors. Upon first mastering it, she had felt that it involved too much dancing around your opponent, as opposed to directly engaging them. Now that she had a chance to employ it in actual combat though, Ginchiyo found she enjoyed its demands for an agile form much more. As Luxray caught on and imitated her, streaks of electricity began to follow their every movement, yellow trails of light cutting them paths through the hordes of demons.

Because of this, it took Ginchiyo several minutes more to realize that her surrounding allies were not finding these enemies as underwhelming as she. While her sword was slicing through demon after demon as though they were made of sand, Ginchiyo soon came upon a cluster of warriors from Terrera barely managing to fend off the enemies closing in around them. Struggling to hold them all together was Lord Shingen's junior warlord, who if anything seemed to be successfully dealing the most damage with his two Fire Pokemon.

Realizing that they were about to be overwhelmed, Ginchiyo raced to their aid, and this time there was no doubt about it - whatever quality her own sword possessed, it was something that could kill these demons in a way these soldiers' weapons could not. And now that she thought about it, hadn't it been exactly the same during the attack on Violight? An entire squadron of her men had been overwhelmed in less than a minute, yet Ginchiyo had managed to hold her own despite being injured. That wasn't a feat she could chalk up to mere skill, was it?

The reminder of what had transpired on that hilltop in Violight shook something in Ginchiyo, and the next slash of her sword was sloppy, missing a female demon's chest and striking her arm instead. The demon hissed in pain as the wound began to smoke, and clawed with her remaining hand at Ginchiyo's face, her shadowy hair rising around her head and writhing like a nest of Ekans.

In spite of the pain that blossomed across her cheek, the sight of that hair triggered a memory in Ginchiyo. Some part of that day had been missing whenever she tried to think back on it. Now, it came crashing down upon her. There had been another woman on the hilltop... a woman who had spoken of _her_ army's triumph that day.

The screeching of the demon before her as it was engulfed in flames brought Ginchiyo back into the present. "My lady, are you alright?" Yukimura asked. "You froze up for a moment and I feared you were injured."

"I'm fine," Ginchiyo confirmed. "Follow me. We need to regroup with the rest of Lord Kenshin's battalion."

"Last I saw Muneshige, he was that way with the rest of Violight's troops," Yukimura said, pointing Ginchiyo and Luxray forward.

From there, Ginchiyo took the lead, and the combined power of all their Pokemon was enough to push them forward. When she finally caught sight of Staraptor circling above them, she allowed herself the briefest moment of relief. Ginchiyo followed the Flying Pokemon as it dived downwards, and when she lowered her sword, she found herself face-to-face with Muneshige.

He filled her in as they fell back-to-back, covering each others' blind spots. "Violight's force was already assembled when the demons arrived. They were hungry for a fight, but so were we. We've managed to clear a small area that wounded men can fall back to with the help of Lord Kenshin's troops, but these things don't go down without a fight. Pokemon attacks seem to hurt them more than physical weapons."

"I've seen the same," Ginchiyo responded, parrying a jagged blade that sliced towards her stomach. Her return thrust contained enough force to send the weapon flying from her foe's hand, and she took off its head in a single cut, again marveling at how little resistance her sword met. Her father had told her it was a Tachibana heirloom, but he hadn't mentioned it being capable of anything like this...

They were close to the edge of the battlefield. This wasn't too great of a concern for Ginchiyo, although the thought of meeting her death by some undignified plummet off the field she was supposed to be defending hardly appealed to her. But as Ginchiyo felt a shockwave ripple beneath her feet, throwing her off balance, she met Muneshige's eyes and saw a confusion similar to her own. This didn't feel like the attack of any Ground-type Pokemon, and Lord Shingen was nowhere in sight.

"What was-" Muneshige was cut off by faint groaning that was steadily growing louder. Abruptly, Ginchiyo realized that something in their surroundings had changed.

Looking down uneasily, her heart gave a lurch of dread as she saw that the crystal ground beneath them, which had been faintly pulsing every color of the rainbow until now, had paled to a gray monochrome. Ginchiyo turned towards the jagged outcroppings on the northern end of the battlefield that Lord Ieyasu's battalion was defending, and a chill was cast over her as she saw that same gray creeping up the crystals, leeching all the color out of them.

The ground beneath them heaved, and Ginchiyo heard a scream of terror. "What's happening?" she shouted, unable to see past the swarm of soldiers around them. But both sides seemed to be coming to the realization that something was very wrong.

Another scream came from the edge of the battlefield, and then a ripple of sound began to build, shouts intensifying in panic as they finally reached Ginchiyo's ears. More cries erupted from the southern end of the field, and all at once a great push began to charge for the center. An older warrior from Illusio was sprinting towards them, her Kirlia having to teleport to keep up with her. Ginchiyo held out her arm to block her, and the warrior barely managed to come to a halt.

"What in the name of the Legendary Pokemon are you doing?" the warrior cried, not seeming to realize who she was speaking to.

"Tell me what's happening!" Ginchiyo ordered as she felt another shockwave radiate beneath their feet. "What is the meaning of this?"

The warrior looked up at Ginchiyo, eyes widening as she took in the lightning bolt crest of Violight that crowned Ginchiyo's helm. "My lady! I - um - it's terrible! A piece of the battlefield just broke off without any warning!"

"Broke off?" Ginchiyo repeated, not quite understanding. "What do you mean?"

The woman gulped, still gasping for air. "There was that awful noise, and then a stretch of crystal about the size of a Steelix splintered from the rest of the battlefield and fell without any warning! There were - there were people still on it!"

More rumbling came from the southern end of the field, and the woman let out a sob. "It must be happening there too! Can't you see?"

She jabbed a finger towards the northern cliffs, that were still being slowly consumed by that gray ripple. "It's the crystals! The crystals are dying!"

* * *

The thought of having to leave Hoshiko's body just lying where she had died repulsed Okuni. But right now, there was no time to do anything more for her fallen friend. Forcing herself to move, Okuni stood and began to walk to the edge of the roof, refusing to look back at the battle's first fatality.

Unlike Lady Aya and Lady No, at least she had a quicker way down. Choosing a location on the battlefield to teleport herself and her Pokemon to wouldn't be difficult, for the fighting had already spread over its entire length. Okuni honed in on a point on the eastern end, close to the bridge that connected the battlefield to the castle. Whatever else happened, they could not afford to have the bridge be overrun.

After ensuring that she had physical contact with both Scolipede and Larvesta, Okuni closed her eyes and imagined a path connecting her position on the roof to that point below her. She stepped out towards it, and for a split second, hovered inches away from falling into open air. Then, the folds of magic separating the human and spirit realms around her opened, and Okuni guided herself through them to where she needed to be.

When she felt solid ground beneath her feet once more, Okuni spared the briefest glimpse to ensure that Scolipede and Larvesta had followed. With that confirmed, only then did she allow herself to remember Hoshiko - the way the green in her eyes had lit up whenever she laughed, the lightness she had carried herself with that made every step she took seem as though she was floating. Okuni's grief was transformed to fury. The enemies that sought to destroy Illusio now had taken her friend from her, from all of Ransei. Okuni was going to make them wish they had stayed in hell.

Certain emotions registered stronger than others down the link between warrior and Pokemon. Rage was one of them. Under the wrong circumstances, it could be a dangerous thing - a sudden burst of pure, undiluted anger out of nowhere could bring out strange responses in Pokemon. But on the battlefield, even as Okuni quickly realized her parasol wasn't going to be of much use, Larvesta's response to its partner's uncharacteristic wrath was explosive.

Whenever Okuni took a step, a ring of fire surrounded her. Scolipede shot spike after spike into the black throng of enemies that was closing in around them, each one finding a mark. If nobody had noticed Okuni arrive on the battlefield, it didn't stay that way for long.

The coalition of troops from Nixtorm and Dragnor that had been tasked with defending the bridge suddenly found themselves able to reform their scattered ranks with much less interference. With that accomplished, they began to push back. The unspoken understanding that losing the bridge would indubitably mean losing the battle fueled each of them, and rows of warriors and Pokemon charged forward to meet the enemy, screaming near-incomprehensible battle cries or whispering prayers for safety. Some fell. But for each that did, another pair took their place almost immediately, more than eager to avenge their defeated allies.

Motochika's attention was drawn away from the demons around him by a flash of flames bright enough to be visible over the tumult of the battlefield from several yards away. A shouted warning from Mitsuhide, and the Ice warlord's katana intercepting a blow that had been meant for him, reminded Motochika of where he was, but not before he had already captured the image in his mind's eye. If any of them survived this, it would be a spectacular moment to commemorate through music.

Aya, who had separated herself from Lady No the moment she had located Kanetsugu and her half of Illusio's troops, was at first confused by Froslass' warning that a section of the battlefield had grown "too hot" for her partner to feel comfortable fighting there. Although much of the murkiness that had clogged their link earlier in the morning was now gone, Aya had still thought she was somehow misunderstanding Froslass. Then she came across the first pile of half-melted obsidian weapons, with none of their demonic wielders in sight, and wondered what force could have been powerful enough to visibly scorch the crystal beneath her feet.

But while it was powerful, more powerful than Okuni had ever known anything could feel, maintaining that strong of a link for such an extended period of time quickly became draining. When the first rumbles of warning from the crystals reached her ears, the world in front of Okuni went out of focus, and that was all it took for that heightened connection between herself and Larvesta to be choked off. She stumbled forward, and only the protection of Larvesta's barrier of flames was what allowed Okuni time to regain her footing.

The crystals around her had yet to be touched, but when Okuni stood, she was facing north. She took in the same sight as Ginchiyo of the ridges being consumed by that strange gray blight, and as cries of grief from Illusio's soldiers began to ring over the battlefield, a horrible realization struck Okuni. The crystals that covered the battlefield, the castle, the entire city - all of them had appeared in the wake of the Legendary Pokemon's blessing. And with the Legendary Pokemon now gone...

Even if nobody else understood the true cause, enough warriors were able to realize that the goal of the battle had shifted dramatically. They had to get off the field before it could crumble completely, and find some way to prevent the same thing from spreading to the airfield and castle. Those warriors who possessed links with Psychic Type Pokemon opted for simply teleporting as many allies and themselves as they could to safety. Avia's troops were quick to respond as well, taking to the sky and plucking up any stragglers too far from the bridge and too close to where more and more cracks were beginning to spread over the surface of the battlefield.

As Okuni braced herself to call up the necessary energy to teleport again, a new order reached her ears over the chaos. It had been relayed in shouts across the battlefield, but she understood enough of it to realize what all remaining warriors were being expected to do. Okuni turned back towards the bridge as an unwelcome sense of doubt wedged into the back of her mind. Was such a drastic measure truly the approach Lord Kenshin wished to take? Apparently so.

Okuni raced for the bridge as a terrible grinding noise split the air, and a great _boom_ sent more shockwaves through the ground that nearly knocked her off her feet as the first section of the ridges crashed onto the field. The only consolation to the ordeal was that the demons seemed to possess a sense of self-preservation as well, and many fled upon realizing that the battlefield's destruction had not been of their army's orchestration. In a darkly twisted manner, Ransei had technically won the day.

By the time all the remaining warriors had reached the bridge, the blight had spread over almost the entire battlefield. Two more sections of the ridges had crumbled, and along the edges of the field, crystal was breaking off in steadily larger chunks. If they were going to stand a chance at saving the castle, they were going to have to sever the bridge as quickly and efficiently as they could.

Lord Masamune and his aerial squadron hovered above them, prepared to fly the ground soldiers to safety in the event that the entire bridge would have to be destroyed. At the front of the crowd, Lord Yoshihiro raised his hammer, shouting the command to begin attacking the cutoff point. Okuni couldn't contribute as much as she would have liked; Scolipede's attacks did little to the hardened crystal, and surrounded by only humans now, Larvesta's flames became more of a liability. As well as that, Okuni couldn't imagine the pain that issuing this order had likely caused Lord Kenshin and Lady Aya.

A sentry from Avia shouted that the blight had reached the base of the bridge, and a heightened sense of urgency spread throughout the assembled warriors. Ironically, it was Lord Shingen's attack that created the first cracks in the glass-like crystal. The order was issued to fall back as the weakened area absorbed the concentrated force of nearly every warrior and Pokemon still in condition to fight - and with one final grating sound that left Okuni gritting her teeth, the bridge was cleaved in two, breaking apart just as the blight began to creep up the translucent stone.

An apocalyptic groan followed as what remained of the battlefield began to decay at an increased rate, plummeting downwards as whatever force that had kept it levitated was cut off. Whether it reached the ground or disintegrated in midair, Okuni didn't find out.

Time froze for all but her as she took in the jagged wound where the bridge had been severed - and then felt a hand on her shoulder. Okuni had made her choice to stay and fight knowing this part would be coming, but that hardly made it easier to turn around and see Setsuna waiting expectantly for her. At least it _was_ Setsuna.

The purple-haired shinigami was visibly nervous, more so than the last time Okuni had spoken to her. Whatever punishment Okuni had averted Yoko delivering to her the other night had likely been thrust upon Setsuna instead, Okuni realized with a stab of guilt. She opened her mouth to apologize, but Setsuna shook her head.

"Don't speak." Just those two words, but her voice contained a hollowness that Okuni had never associated with Setsuna until now. It chilled her to the bone in a way Yoko never could.

"This reaping is important," Setsuna continued in that same pained monotone, but her gray eyes betrayed that she had been force-fed this monologue. "Do as you are told and do not interact with the spirit beyond what is proper."

She turned and began to walk into the castle, and Okuni had to scramble to follow. "Setsuna?" Okuni asked, growing increasingly concerned when Setsuna flinched at the sound of Okuni's voice. "Setsuna, what's wrong? Who's died?" Okuni pressed. She felt a soft fluttering around her body, and looked down to see she was now garbed in the same full ceremonial reaper's garb as Setsuna. Definitely not a good sign.

"Setsuna? Answer me, please!" Okuni pleaded as the other shinigami led them through the castle doors and towards a flight of stairs. Unable to bear Setsuna's silence any longer, Okuni reached out and grasped her hand.

Her reaction was immediate in snatching her hand out of Okuni's, but her facade fell. "Okuni, I implore you," Setsuna whispered, facing Okuni with a pained intensity. "Just perform this reaping the way I tell you to and Yoko will forgive both of us. It's for your own good."

Okuni had already guessed that this sort of inconsistent behavior from Setsuna could have only been caused by Yoko, but it still infuriated her to hear the quiver of fear - legitimate fear - in Setsuna's voice. "Setsuna, please just tell me who's dead," Okuni repeated, feeling a desperation begin to take hold of her. "It - it will help me be better prepared for the reaping."

Setsuna clenched the fist that Okuni had grabbed, hard enough for Okuni to see the other shinigami digging her fingernails into her palm. "Follow me," was all Setsuna said before turning back around.

The sinking feeling in Okuni's stomach intensified as they exited whatever side corridor Setsuna had lead them through and entered the atrium. Already, it was filling up with injured, wide-eyed warriors, frozen in time as they tended to their wounds and frantically searched for friends. Setsuna advanced past them all towards the throne room.

Past the rose quartz double doors, separate areas had been sectioned off for injured warlords and their lieutenants. Okuni did her best to peer behind the filmy white curtains that had hastily been thrown up to offer privacy, and nearly ran into Setsuna when her mentor abruptly stopped before one towards the center of the room. "Through here," Setsuna said, holding the curtain open for Okuni.

The trepidation Okuni felt as she stepped into that makeshift hospital ward was nothing compared to the horror that washed over her at seeing the warlord lying before her - the warlord who had been marked for reaping. "No," she whispered. "No, Setsuna, I can't do this. There has to be some other way."

"Please, Okuni, don't make this difficult," Setsuna breathed, standing beside her. "I know you may feel an... attachment. But it is not our duty to defy death when it takes its course. There is nothing more to be done than escort the soul once the body fails."

So that was what this was. Forcing Okuni to escort a soul she knew, a soul whose death would change everything about this war. Setsuna looked over to meet Okuni's disbelieving eyes. "Separate yourself from it. I promise the process will be easier."

It was the kindness in her voice, the sympathy, that put a stop to Okuni's objections. Setsuna had probably had to do this too, at some point. Maybe that was what had gotten her through it.

Taking a deep breath, Okuni mentally asked for forgiveness - to whom, she wasn't sure. Then, she knelt down over the body before her and began the death rites.


	15. Chapter 15

_**Chapter 14**_

The groans of the bridge as it was slowly severed were knives in Aya's heart, and she felt the ache of the crystal's dying screeches like it was her own body being ripped in two. Giving the order had been the right decision, the only decision. She had to tell herself that. That didn't make it any easier for her to watch it be carried out.

The battle was ending, but there was still so much that had to be done. Aya had barely been teleported off the field by one of her lieutenants before she had begun ushering the wounded into the castle's atrium. It proved to be a welcome distraction when she could no longer stand the sounds coming from what remained of the battlefield. The first wave of survivors teleporting and flying in had created chaos within the castle, and a network of any warriors who could had been hastily established over two floors to direct everyone to one place. Aya herself was bleeding from claw marks lacing across her shoulder and down her arm, but her wounds could wait. There were plenty of others who had been hurt worse than her.

Because of the chaos outside the castle, at first Aya didn't hear Kanetsugu calling for her. Only when she spotted the helm that she had given him when he had first become her student above the crowd did she register his frantic shouting of her name. Pushing her way through the clusters of warriors already beginning to overflow from the atrium, Aya saw the panicked expression on Kanetsugu's face before he saw her.

"Kanetsugu! I'm here!" she shouted over another roar from the soldiers on the bridge. She waved her uninjured arm in the air, and Kanetsugu finally spotted her, racing over.

"My lady! You're - you're injured!" he realized, eyes falling to the wounds beneath the shredded fabric of Aya's sleeve.

"It's nothing serious," Aya insisted, which was only half a lie. It certainly hurt like hell, but she still had full use of her arm, and she wasn't in immediate danger of bleeding out. "What about you? Is there something wrong with Kadabra?"

Kanetsugu shook his head. "No, my lady. It's - it's Lord Kenshin, my lady."

Aya's heart plunged into her stomach as she heard the hushed tone of Kanetsugu's voice. "What's happened to Kenshin, Kanetsugu?" The world swayed around her in a manner that had nothing to do with her wounds, and Aya found herself having to lean on her naginata for support.

Kanetsugu nervously swallowed. "I'm, ah, not entirely certain, my lady. Lord Ieyasu is the one who told me to find you."

"Take me to wherever you last saw him, immediately," Aya ordered. Not even bothering to see if Froslass and Beartic were behind her, Aya followed Kanetsugu back through the crowd and up the stairs into the atrium. Her feet moved so quickly across the mercifully still-illuminated crystal floor, she was practically skimming its surface. They entered the throne room, every possible fear running through Aya's mind as they did so.

Behind one curtain, she caught sight of Lady Nene helping to wrap Lord Hideyoshi's arm in a sling. Another, and there was Ujiyasu's junior warlord having her Darmanitan tended to by a medic. Both scenes were normal enough. And what was more, no dreams had haunted her in the night, no prophecies of death. Nothing could be too wrong, Aya frantically tried to convince herself.

Then why hadn't she predicted the battlefield, or the crystals?

Kanetsugu stopped outside a divider that had been set up further away from the rest. "He was just through here, my lady," he hesitantly began, holding the curtain open for Aya to step through. "I... I'll wait here."

The first person Aya saw upon entering the makeshift hospital ward was Lord Ieyasu, who stood too quickly upon hearing her footsteps. "My lady! I see that student of yours was able to find you."

"Yes, he was," Aya breathed. "Why did you feel the need to send for me?"

Ieyasu paused, clearly unsure how to proceed. Finally, he settled for, "My lady... during the battle, I was directly beneath the cliffs when they started to fall. Lord Kenshin, he - well, he threw himself in the way of one so that I could get the last of my men off the field."

It was so like her brother. He had never had any sense of self-preservation when the safety of one of his men was threatened in battle. Aya had always loved that about him. Now, the thought made her nauseous.

"Let me see him," Aya ordered, realizing what it was Ieyasu was trying to block from her vision. _Who_ it was. Without waiting for Ieyasu to move, she pushed past him, only to feel the breath escape her lungs as she beheld the body laying before her. _"Oh, Kenshin, you fool."_

* * *

Okuni couldn't even begin to imagine what could have done this to Lord Kenshin. Before she and Setsuna had arrived, some medic had done their best to bandage his wounds, but it could have only been a formality. The crimson gashes slashing across his chest were deep, but alone they might not have been enough. His face, though...

As Okuni's fingers hovered over the wrappings covering nearly the entire left half of Lord Kenshin's face, she wished there was some other way to perform the rites. But the spirit's eyes always had to be unobscured. Otherwise, pieces of their soul could be left behind.

It wasn't the physical injuries that made it difficult. Okuni had seen her fair share of grisly wounds on soldiers killed in battle. Even so, she had to wince as she pulled the bandages back, exposing the ruin that had been made of Lord Kenshin's left eye and cheek. It reminded her uncomfortably of the single time she had witnessed what lay beneath Yoko's eyepatch.

The last time Okuni had performed a true reaping had been seven years earlier, for the soul of Lady Ginchiyo's father. The process she began as she held out her hands over Lord Kenshin's chest, ironically as though to resuscitate him, was intricately more detailed than simply escorting a spirit. This was the act of actually drawing the soul out, something that was only required if it was refusing to leave the body.

Coaxing it out was the hardest part. Typically, the spirit's refusal was rooted in sentimentality, a refusal to let go of what they had been in life. Okuni positioned the palms of her hands over Lord Kenshin's heart, taking a slow breath in. She reached out with her mind, her hands acting as conductors as she slowly began to cut through the tethers that were clinging on to Lord Kenshin's soul.

With each, she was given a small glimpse into his memories. Sunlight streaming across a table, all manners of scrolls laid out in front of him. The feel of a sword in his hands, matching each attack perfectly in time with those of his Kirlia's. Holding an oddly-shaped pendant in his palm, watching its color shift from vermilion to vibrant pink.

At first, Okuni was confused. None of these seemed like memories that would be strong enough to keep him tied to the world of the living. The moment of questioning left her unprepared for the next thread she cut. When she did so, the memory completely overtook her before she could stop it.

 _She had been crying. Aya hid it well, hid it so well that Kenshin had once overheard some of the servants whispering that it was unnatural for a sixteen-year-old girl to show such little emotion. But he knew how to tell. Her breathing would grow slightly shakier, and she would tense if you reached for her too suddenly. It didn't happen often. When it did though, he just wished she would tell him_ why _._

 _That day, he tried to ask her. He found her sitting alone at their usual table in the castle library. Her fist was clenched atop the marble surface, and she at first refused to lift her head from the scroll she was pretending to be invested in the contents of. When she finally answered him, there was so much love in her eyes. Love, and some tainted thing Kenshin had not yet experienced. "It's nothing I could explain to you, Kenshin," she had told him. And so they never spoke of it again._

Okuni struggled to regain control, but she was submerged in the sea of Lord Kenshin's memories, being dragged along the current of moments that were keeping his soul so stubbornly anchored. Each one began to unfold in beautiful, heartrending detail for her, and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

 _"Why do you like these stories so much, Aya? You don't think it actually happened like that, do you?"_

 _Aya as a child giggled across from him, gently tracing a finger over the inked illustration on the scroll of a woman holding a massive sword aloft above her head. "I know it's just a story, Kenshin. But don't you love reading about the heroes? Imagine if one day, somebody wrote about you or me like that!" She jumped out of her chair, pretending to stab a sword at some invisible enemy. "Aya and Kenshin, the legendary defenders of Illusio! No evil could stop them!"_

 _Kenshin laughed, joining her. They ran between the shelves, fighting their own imaginary battle side by side well into the afternoon, until the caretaker of the library finally had to throw them out._

The next memory flashed forward several years, and this time both of the siblings were clearly teenagers. From where they stood, they could have been mirror images of each other.

 _The movements of their weapons were in perfect sync, at times spinning in their hands so rapidly that Kenshin could see their instructor struggling to keep up. When he had linked with Kirlia, their father had decided it was time for Kenshin to begin training as a warrior. Kenshin had been eager, but Aya had matched him just as much in every lesson, always making sure he never got too full of himself._

 _Even though Aya still hadn't found a partner of her own (and had privately confided in him that she wasn't certain she was even meant to link with a Psychic Pokemon), she never allowed that to be her excuse when she faltered. Kenshin knew there were conflicts stirring on all sides of Illusio's borders. He couldn't wait for the day he and Aya could defend their home in real combat._

Finally, Okuni saw a familiar sight before her eyes: the throne room of Illusio's castle. It was packed to the brim, both humans and Pokemon kneeling before the throne.

 _As tradition dictated, Kenshin waited until the sun reached its full peak in the sky. The entire throne room was hushed as the sunlight streaming through the roof refracted off the throne, casting a rainbow prism of light over their heads. Kenshin lifted the Shinzo crystal into the center of that light, and felt its power running down his arm and through his body when it recognized him as the new ruler of Illusio. Before his eyes, its color shifted to the pink that would become his personal banner._

 _A gasp came from the crowd as a figure in the front row stood - a woman in robes bearing the crest of the Illusio royal guard, with the same dark hair as Kenshin but deep blue eyes that none in their family possessed. Aya met Kenshin's gaze, the pride in her gaze a fiercer force than any warrior on the battlefield he had seen._

 _"Long live Lord Kenshin!" she called, her voice a clear echo through the space around her. As the cry was picked up by the other inhabitants of the room, Aya and Kenshin remained locked in their own world. It was in that moment he realized, not without a chill, exactly how far his sister would go to protect their kingdom - to protect him._

"Okuni!" Setsuna's voice forced Okuni out of the cycle of memories, and she scrambled for a moment to keep her mental grip on Lord Kenshin's soul. Setsuna was kneeling beside her, apparently having foregone keeping watch over the ceremony without interfering.

The memories Okuni had witnessed thus far now floated above Lord Kenshin's body, taking the form of tiny orbs of light. She could feel them still calling to her, trying to draw her back in, but Setsuna's grip on her shoulder kept Okuni in the present. "Be careful," Setsuna cautioned. "I'll be at your side if anything goes wrong, but... I'm technically only supposed to be here to ensure you perform the reaping."

Nodding, Okuni tried to loosen some of the tension in her body. "I'm sorry, Setsuna. Lord Dosetsu was just... easier."

She cut through the final tethers more urgently than before, sparing them only the quickest inspections. She wanted this part to be done, so she could just proceed to the escort. By the time a spirit realized there was no going back, the allure of the afterlife tended to grow much stronger. Severing Lord Kenshin's last memories of the battle's events with a grim finality, Okuni watched as his soul slowly began to rise from his body - thankfully looking as he had before the wounds that had killed him.

This part, Okuni was fairly certain she could do in her sleep. When Lord Kenshin opened his eyes, Okuni wasn't sure if he recognized her - he had only spoken to her at warlord conferences once or twice in the past, and her ceremonial garb left part of her face veiled.

She might not have known Lord Kenshin personally, but Okuni had always respected him. The thought of what Illusio would do without him weighed heavily on her as she gently took his hand. "Come with me," she intoned. "There is nothing more for you here."

Lord Kenshin looked more closely at her, then back at his own body. Okuni's stomach clenched in panic at that; it almost never did new spirits good to see what had become of their physical forms. But what happened next was something that jarred her even more - Lord Kenshin shook his head, pointing back towards the ravaged corpse that had been his, then at the figure kneeling beside it. And Okuni understood what it was that he wanted.

* * *

Aya knelt down beside her brother, her hands frozen somewhere between reaching towards him and clenching at her chest. This was wrong, a violation of everything that she held to believe. The crystals were the life force of Illusio, the representation of their home. They were not supposed to do _this_ , be weapons that maimed and destroyed.

And Kenshin... he was _Kenshin_. The dragon of Illusio, whose prowess in battle was rivaled by almost none. He was her brother, who she had sworn to protect until the end of her days. Long before any oath had bound her to the duty, she had sworn that vow to herself.

So where had Aya been when the cliffs had fallen? Not at his side, which was all that mattered. She could have prevented this. It could have, it should have been her taking the blow from that crystal. What was she to Illusio, but its shadowed bastard daughter? The woman who preached of love, but held too much of it for her brother, and didn't everyone know what unnatural things that implied? Yes, Illusio could afford her loss. It could not afford Kenshin's.

At first, Aya was certain that her senses had betrayed her when Kenshin's chest lifted, and a breath hitched from his body in spite of all the damage that had been inflicted upon him. It was impossible. Not even a dragon could survive these wounds - but then he rasped out a single word.

"Sister."

Her voice faltering in her throat, Aya cautiously took his hand. It was warm. "Kenshin?"

Kenshin groaned as he took another breath, and blossoms of scarlet began to form beneath the bandages wrapped around his chest. "Aya. Take it."

No. He couldn't possibly mean... Kenshin's remaining eye opened, witness to Aya's horrified expression. "She's waiting for me, sister. Please. I should already be gone."

She had no idea what her brother was talking about. Except for what Kenshin wanted her to take. But if Aya did, that would make this real. If she refused to take the Shinzo crystal from Kenshin, Illusio would be left without a warlord if he died. He would have to live, fight on as he always had, and Aya could remain his right hand, supporting him from behind the throne. That was all she had ever wanted. Never this.

When Aya didn't move, Kenshin reached for the cord strung around his neck. Aya tried to take that hand too, but he pulled it free of her grasp. "You know the right to possess it runs in your veins just as much as it does in mine," Kenshin stated. "You can no longer deny yourself for my sake."

"Stop this," Aya hissed through gritted teeth. "You can't give up. Illusio needs you."

" _I need you,"_ she wanted to say. But Aya had learned long ago to put aside her own desires. If it didn't concern the future of Illusio, it wasn't something that she concerned herself with. Everything she had done in her life had been for that purpose, for helping to forge a world where she and Kenshin could see peace together.

"My time is over," Kenshin insisted. He wrapped his own hand around hers, and Aya felt him pressing something into it. She bit back the sob building in her chest, knowing that if she opened her palm, it would mean facing the future that she had never allowed herself to imagine. Because a future where she was warlord of Illusio was a future where Kenshin was not at her side.

Kenshin sighed, staring at something beside Aya that she couldn't make out. "I'll be joining you in a moment," he reassured whatever it was that he could see. Looking back at Aya, he said, "I could never leave without saying goodbye."

His hand fell loose from Aya's, and her brother closed his eyes for the final time.

Aya couldn't breathe. A horrible sound escaped her throat, a weak, whimpering sound that she barely recognized as her own voice. Her anguish broke over her all at once, and she began to sob with no regard for her surroundings. Wrapping her arms around Kenshin's body, she tried to pull him upwards, to take him in her arms as she had when they were children. It was as though there was no strength left to her, and she collapsed over him, a frantic attempt come too late to shield him from the blow that had done this to him.

Not even the brush of Froslass' wavelength against hers could comfort Aya as she felt the final dregs of warmth leech out of her brother's body. She was beyond caring if Ieyasu or Kanetsugu were seeing her brought to this state. How could the world beyond those curtains still be going on, how could they not all know what had just occurred? Sweet Arceus, it would fall to her to tell them. It would be her duty, as-

Her sobs broke off as Aya forced herself to sit up, to unclench her fingers from the cage that they had formed around her brother's final gift to her. Aya's hand was trembling as she beheld the Shinzo crystal once more, for the first time in eight years. It still shone pink, but its vibrance was lost. The light that pulsed from it was weak, already longing to be joined with the next warlord of Illusio. With Aya. The thought gave her no satisfaction.

She felt as though her body moved separate from her will as it stood, turned, walked back through the curtains in an unfeeling stride. Only the sound of Kanetsugu's voice brought her senses back to her. "My lady... is Lord Kenshin-"

"Yes." It felt like a betrayal to say it. As she did, Aya felt it carving a wound into her soul that she could never hope to heal. But her raw, unrefined grief was not what Illusio, not what Ransei needed to see from her right now. They needed her brother - and if Aya wasn't that right now, it was what she would become.

Proceeding forward, Aya left the specter of death behind her in the throne room. It was time to face her future. Even if it was a future without the love that had always driven her life.

* * *

"You shouldn't have let him do that, Okuni," Setsuna began when the escort was completed. "Once a spirit dies, nothing short of the Legendary Pokemon's intervention should be able to bring it back. It's not our place to decide such things."

Okuni couldn't try to defend herself. She had been aware of the protocols she was breaking when she allowed Lord Kenshin his goodbyes. And no, it probably wasn't fair that he had gotten them when there were so many other warriors today that hadn't. In the end, all she could say was, "You never saw him and Lady Aya. The bond that those two shared... Trust me when I say one of them would have found a way, regardless of anything we said."

Setsuna sighed, looking truly sorry as she continued. "You know I'm going to have to tell Yoko. She wants a full report from me on all of the reapings you perform today, and we both know trying to lie to her only makes it worse when she finds out."

Oddly enough, the thought of Yoko's potential reaction to what Okuni had done didn't fill Okuni with the same dread it might once have. "Well, you don't need to tell her anything until you go back," she remarked. "Is there any rule saying that retired reapers aren't allowed to help out with escort duty? Even if we work together, I think we'll still have our hands quite full."

Looking up, Setsuna blinked, a small smile forming on her face. "No, I don't think there is."

Was using the aftermath of this battle as a way to rebel against Yoko morbidly wrong? Okuni was certain some would argue that it was, and perhaps they would be right. But it was in that moment that Okuni realized, even if Setsuna's hands were often tied, Okuni still had an ally in her. Whether or not that meant much in the grand scheme of things didn't really matter to Okuni, either.

She was going to have enough new conflicts facing her when she returned to the human realm. For now, she could just focus on the task at hand with Setsuna by her side.

She knew she couldn't talk to Setsuna about the fragment of the Legendary Pokemon's power Okuni suspected now lay within her. Nor did she suspect Setsuna could give her much advice on how to proceed with Lady No in light of the day's events. Likewise, Okuni wouldn't be able to be there for Setsuna in the spirit world when she would finally have to report back to Yoko. But as long as they shared the goal of helping all the wandering spirits left behind by the day's events, they didn't have to.

A part of Okuni did balk at the idea of potentially having to repeat that reaping for any of the warriors she had come to know - Lord Motonari, Ina, perhaps even Lady No or Lord Nobunaga some day. But it soon became clear today would not be that day. And when that time came, Okuni thought she would rather have her own memories of her fellow warriors than wondering what had become of them.

Today had been difficult. But it would not be the end. Okuni knew there would always be warriors in Ransei who would fight for the future. The only difference was that now, she considered herself among them.


	16. Chapter 16

_**Chapter 15**_

Ginchiyo sat in the throne room with Muneshige, the pounding in her head making it near impossible for her to focus on anything else. _"Maybe that demon struck me harder than I first thought,"_ she grimaced, brushing the bandages on her cheek with her fingers.

"Be careful," Muneshige cautioned, as though he and Staraptor hadn't nearly gone down with the battlefield trying to help survivors reach safety. "The bleeding only just stopped a few minutes ago."

Another flare of pain radiated through Ginchiyo's brain, and Muneshige's incessant fussing over her wasn't helping. "I could do without you hovering over me for five minutes," she snapped, not particularly caring if that harsh of a rebuke was needed.

If Muneshige planned to respond, he was denied the chance by the curtain in front of them opening to reveal a young woman in singed shrine maiden's garments, accompanied by a Scolipede and a Larvesta - Lady No's junior warlord.

"Oh, I'm sorry," she said, quickly bowing before continuing. "Have either of you seen Lady No, by any chance?"

"I'm afraid not," Muneshige responded. "Did you happen to spot her on the bridge, Lady Ginchiyo?"

"I wouldn't have spoken with her if I had, but no," Ginchiyo stated. It was hardly a secret that her and Lady No's differing personalities had put them at odds early on. "About half the seventeen kingdoms were on that bridge, though. If anyone would have seen her, ask someone from Avia."

"Thank you," Okuni said, bowing her head once more. As she made to leave, a warrior in armor bearing the crest of Illusio entered behind her.

"Beg pardon, but Lady Aya has an announcement to make," he began, clearing his throat before continuing. "She asks that as many warriors in fit condition as possible gather in the atrium."

The mention of Aya's name caught Ginchiyo by surprise. "Lady Aya?" she asked. "Why not Lord Kenshin?" Even as she said it, one unwelcome possibility sprang into Ginchiyo's mind, but she quickly smothered it. There had to be some other explanation.

Frowning, the warrior tentatively replied, "I'm not certain, my lady. Lady Aya gave no specifics."

Ignoring the unease that settled over her at that, Ginchiyo stood and beckoned to Luxray. "Well then, there's no point in waiting around." Seeing that Okuni was still with them, Ginchiyo added on, "You might as well come with us. I suspect Lady No will be close by."

The general atmosphere in the castle was far from one of triumph. The destruction of the battlefield had shaken everyone, and it didn't help that nobody was particularly certain of what had caused the crystals to decay. Ginchiyo could see several warriors nervously looking around the throne room, as though expecting the walls to begin turning that same sickly gray.

When they entered the atrium, Ginchiyo's eyes were immediately drawn to Aya. Her face was a stone mask as she stood before the castle doors, a young man with a Kadabra at his side just behind her. Aya's normally pristine white kimono was so covered in bloodstains that it appeared crimson, and its left sleeve had been shredded to practical nonexistence, exposing a painful-looking set of wounds lacing halfway down her arm. She looked, Ginchiyo thought, like some goddess of war - battered, but never broken.

Aya surveyed the assembled crowd, seeming to draw into herself for just a moment. Then, her eyes hardened, and she held up her hands for silence. The few soft conversations that had been scattered around the room quieted, and Aya stepped forward.

"There is no easy way to say this," she began, each word clearly a heavy weight as it left her mouth. "For me, it does not yet feel entirely real." She paused, and the room was filled with such a stillness that Ginchiyo doubted any of its inhabitants were daring to breathe.

Aya drew in a deep breath. "Kenshin is dead." The final word echoed off the crystal walls like a funeral bell. _"Dead, dead, dead."_

 _"Lord Kenshin?"_ Even Ginchiyo was struck dumb for a moment. It seemed as though the room was at first unable to process Aya's words. Lord Kenshin was a legend. In the decade that he had been warlord of Illusio, the Psychic kingdom had not fallen in battle once. For Arceus' sake, the man wasn't even forty! All this and more was conveyed by the first voice to break the silence - a choked, "What?" from Lord Shingen.

With that, a fresh wave of sorrow broke over the already grieving soldiers from Illusio. Several fell to their knees, faces buried in their hands. Even the soldier at Aya's side was struggling to remain composed.

The reactions were similar among the warlords that Ginchiyo could see. Lady Rei's hands flew to her mouth, her head shaking in disbelief as Oichi clung to her arm for support. Lady Nene buried her face into a stunned Lord Hideyoshi's chest, her body beginning to shudder with sobs. Lord Motochika bowed his head, and Lord Ieyasu seemed unable to bring himself to look at Aya for a moment longer. At Ginchiyo's side, Muneshige was doing his best to remain steadfast, but Ginchiyo saw him stagger as though the wind had been knocked out of him.

Ginchiyo glanced over at Okuni to see how she was faring. Strangely, the shrine maiden's reaction seemed almost delayed - her brown eyes widened in shock after a moment, but it was as though she had needed to remind herself to do it. Had she somehow already known? _"Impossible,"_ Ginchiyo thought. _"But it's been a taxing few hours. I wouldn't blame her for not being entirely in one place."_

Throughout it all, Aya stood rooted to the spot, her face unyielding despite the storm of emotions Ginchiyo knew must be raging within her. It was a struggle Ginchiyo understood well enough. When Dosetsu had been killed, she had been allowed precious little time to grieve; the breath had barely left her father's body when the helm of Violight had been placed upon Ginchiyo's own head.

The despair that was cast over the room was almost a palpable force, leeching into every warrior's soul and even seeming to dim the sunlight creeping though the half-closed castle doors. But finally, one warrior - the same woman from the battlefield, Ginchiyo realized - looked up at Aya. She barely managed to keep her voice from breaking as she asked, "Lady Aya... what of the succession?"

Aya reached for some sort of pendant clasped around her throat, one Ginchiyo had never seen her wearing in Violight. Clutching at it as she spoke, Aya answered, "That is the other matter I wished to make known. Kenshin has declared me his successor."

A few murmurs ran through the crowd, but overall, it was a decision that little possessed reason to doubt. Those few who remembered the scandal that had surrounded Aya's birth had always suspected Kenshin would wish to see his sister restored to her proper station, especially as the years had gone on and he had made no attempts at fathering an heir. And it wasn't as though there was no precedence for a female ruler of Illusio - the first warlord of the Psychic kingdom had been a woman, after all.

"Any who wish to stay for the funeral are welcome to do so," Aya continued. "I know Kenshin's mark on Ransei extended far beyond Illusio. His legacy should have been so much greater." Her eyes found Ginchiyo in the crowd as she concluded.

"As this conflict continues, we all should remember that our greatest strength right now lies in the bonds that we forge with our fellow warriors. Many more lives would have been lost today if even one kingdom had not sent a delegation, of that I am certain. Whatever happens from here, I implore all of you - my now fellow warlords. Ransei must remain united." With that, she stepped forward, the crowd parting in an almost singular movement to grant Aya a path to the throne room. Her head remained high as each of her footsteps sounded on the crystal floor, and as she passed Ginchiyo, they exchanged the slightest of glances.

Something had changed in Aya's gaze - Ginchiyo had caught on quickly that Aya's true emotions could always be visible in her eyes. But now, all Ginchiyo could see in them was her own reflection, tinted a deep, cold blue.

Several moments after Aya had departed, another burst of pain rocketed through Ginchiyo's head, followed by a rush of heat that rivaled all the volcanoes of Ignis. Unable to stop herself, Ginchiyo let out a quiet gasp, heard only by Muneshige. He cautiously moved closer to her as Ginchiyo's surroundings seemed to split - she was still standing in the atrium of Illusio's castle, as the warlords began to dispel amidst their injured. But it was as though some shadowy layer had formed over it all, too.

Murky shapes flickered before Ginchiyo's eyes, none staying solid long enough for her to gain an idea of what they could be. But the voices... those she heard like they were right beside her. And one was chillingly familiar.

 _"The last of that girl's power... why do I still not possess it all?"_

The second voice also sounded feminine, but unlike the first, it was unknown to Ginchiyo.

 _"It has only been a matter of hours, my lady. These things can take time."_

 _"I have spent enough time waiting, Izumi. Are you certain there was no interference?"_

There was a pause, and Ginchiyo assumed that whoever this Izumi was, she was weighing her next words carefully.

 _"When I was on the battlefield in the kingdom of crystals, there was one girl who caught my attention. She fought with a ferocity that no human should be able to possess. Even I feared to approach her."_

Ginchiyo recognized the irritated hiss that the first voice gave. _"She is the one, then. Somehow, the last of the power was transferred to her."_

 _"If I may, my lady, that is not the only thing of interest about this girl. I sensed a familiar aura around her. I believe she is one of the order."_

After a moment, the first voice let out a deep laugh. _"I suppose that would interest you, Izumi. You have my permission to hunt her, if that is what you so desire."_

The sound of Muneshige's voice drowned out Izumi's response, and Ginchiyo became aware that she had, at some point, begun to collapse. Muneshige had caught her before she could fall to the floor, but it had still drawn the attention of several nearby warriors. Including, Ginchiyo noted with some distaste, the until now elusive Lady No, whose smirk at the sight of Ginchiyo wrapped in Muneshige's arms made Ginchiyo want to stab the Ghost warlord with her own hairpin.

"Are you alright?" Muneshige whispered as Ginchiyo shook herself free of his grasp.

"I'm fine," she insisted, although it still felt as though someone was attempting to drill a hole through her head. "Everything just hit me at once."

Muneshige's skepticism was obvious, but he didn't push her any further. Ginchiyo turned away from him and stalked back into the throne room, intent on seeking out Aya. Besides, she needed a moment to come to terms with what had just occurred.

A girl who had been on the battlefield today was now in incredible danger, of that Ginchiyo was certain. She wasn't sure how she would accomplish it, but she needed to find this girl and warn her.

But why was Ginchiyo now hearing the voice of the woman who had ordered the attack on Violight inside her head?

* * *

Okuni watched Muneshige's gaze follow Lady Ginchiyo as the Electric warlord stormed away from them both. Muneshige was either a terrible actor, or he wasn't trying too hard to conceal the reason that Okuni suspected he was so devoted to Lady Ginchiyo.

"Will she be alright?" Okuni asked. Despite Lady Ginchiyo's protestations, she had looked anything but fine as her eyes had rolled back into her head.

Muneshige sighed, holding out his arm for Staraptor to land on. "Once she gets into a state, it's best to just let her work it out on her own. I think all of us are going to be feeling on edge now, if anyone wasn't before."

 _"As if there's ever been a time when Lady Ginchiyo hasn't been on edge."_ Okuni couldn't help but hear Lady No's voice in her head. Lady Ginchiyo was another one of Lady No's less-preferred warlords that Okuni herself harbored no ill feelings towards, but unlike Lady Aya, Okuni could understand how certain people might find themselves rubbed the wrong way by Lady Ginchiyo's personality.

Finally catching sight of Lady No, Okuni bade Muneshige farewell and began to walk after the Ghost warlord. Lady No was quick to slip out of the room, and by the time Okuni caught up to her, they were standing alone on one of the flights of stairs connecting the castle's second and third levels.

"My lady?" Okuni called, although the sound of Okuni's footsteps had already caused Lady No to halt halfway up the stairs.

"Yes, Okuni?" Lady No answered, and the tone of her voice made it perfectly clear that she had not yet forgotten Okuni's restraining her on the rooftop earlier that morning.

Shifting her feet, Okuni hesitantly began, "Is Spectra going to be staying for Lord Kenshin's funeral?" She doubted that Lady Aya's coronation was an event Lady No desired to be present for, but Okuni had always received the impression that, like most warlords, Lady No had respected Lord Kenshin even if their philosophies didn't tend to align. As well as that, surely Lady No wouldn't wish for it to seem as though Spectra was refusing to pay any sort of respects.

Lady No turned, raising an eyebrow. "I was under the impression that you heard Lady Aya as well as I earlier today. I don't expect Lord Kenshin's death will have changed the fact that my welcome in this castle seems to be worn out."

If Lady No intended to leave, it was likely that the majority of Spectra's soldiers would follow her. Okuni couldn't help but notice the phrasing the Ghost warlord had used, though. "Your welcome, my lady?"

Lady No sighed, looking pointedly down at Okuni. " _You_ are free to do whatever you see fit, although you'll be finding your own transportation back to Spectra should you stay." After a frigid moment, she added on, "Although I can't say it would surprise me if you chose to, seeing as you certainly didn't seem to have a problem following Lady Aya's orders this morning."

Clearly the events that had transpired on the rooftop were weighing on both of their minds. Well then, Okuni figured she might as well lay her cards out on the table.

"We thought that one of those demons had stolen the shard, not you!" she protested, her fist clenching around the banister of the staircase. "And quite frankly, I don't think Lady Aya's reaction was terribly unjustified. I know if someone were to use Scolipede or Larvesta against me, I would find it difficult to forgive them!"

Lady No's expression remained unaffected. After another tense moment of silence, she countered in a low voice, "Well then, if you disapprove of my actions so much, why don't you ask Lady Aya for a position in her service?"

Okuni stiffened, unsure if she was understanding the implications of what Lady No was saying. "Are you dismissing me as your junior warlord?"

"I never said that," Lady No coolly commented. "But the original terms of your service were that you only needed to swear fealty to me for a year. The ability to walk out of the castle doors and not look back without suffering a moment for it has been available to you for the past two years. Your decision to remain in Spectra throughout that time has been entirely your own, my interference ended long ago."

"Well - I - there was a war going on!" Okuni stammered. "You weren't the only warlord who was forcefully enlisting any warrior who showed up on their doorstep! It wouldn't have been safe for me to leave, especially if anyone were to recognize me as the junior warlord of Lord Nobunaga's closest general!"

"The war has been over for six months," Lady No challenged. "And yet I still wake every morning to find that you remain in my service."

Now Okuni was truly confused. "Are you saying that you want me to resign?"

Lady No advanced down the stairs until she was only one step above Okuni, looking down at the shrine maiden with eyes of violet fire. "I don't care what you do," Lady No answered, each word harshly punctuated. "But whatever you choose, be certain that it is what you truly want." With that, the Ghost warlord joined Mismagius at the top of the stairs, and Okuni was left alone.

 _"Was that genuine advice, or a threat?"_ Okuni wondered. Perhaps some time away from Spectra wouldn't be a terribly bad idea.

 _"Or at least waiting before talking to Lady No again,"_ she sighed. Okuni doubted that exchange had done anything to improve the break that had been rent between her and Lady No. Besides, hadn't a leave from her duties been exactly what Okuni had intended to take before all of this had started? Maybe it wouldn't be exactly what she had envisioned, but it would still be an overdue change of scenery.

She felt a nudge against her leg, and looked down to see Larvesta, the fringe around its neck glowing a faint red. Okuni felt its concern through their link.

"Don't worry," she reassured her partner. "We're just going to be sticking around here for a couple of days." Sighing, she added, "But first there's something we have to do."

Following the stairs all the way to the top floor, Okuni had to look away as she once more passed by Lord Kenshin's - now Lady Aya's, she supposed - quarters. Okuni doubted that Lady Aya would be coming here tonight, but she still hurried up the staircase to the roof. So much had changed in only the handful of hours since Lady Aya had led her and Hoshiko here. It felt like a different lifetime ago. Okuni winced at that thought.

 _"Maybe I should have asked someone for help,"_ she thought, unsure of how she was going to manage carrying Hoshiko down five flights of stairs. But as Okuni quickly realized, that wasn't the most pressing concern. A quick search around the roof confirmed it - Hoshiko's body was gone.

But something else did remain. A glint in the sunlight caught Okuni's attention, and she had to fight the revulsion that rose within her as she saw the two broken shards of obsidian still lying where they had fallen.

Approaching them cautiously, Okuni debated whether or not throwing them off the roof would be a safe option. It was more than tempting, but Okuni had no idea if they were still unstable. If she couldn't give Hoshiko a proper burial, the least she could do was make sure the objects that had lead to her death were properly destroyed.

Plucking one of the shards up as though it was a poisonous snake, Okuni gestured to Larvesta. "Don't stop burning until there's nothing left," she commanded her partner. Setting the piece down what she hoped was a safe distance from its counterpart, Okuni watched with satisfaction as Larvesta's flames engulfed the obsidian, at first turning it a molten red, then breaking it down until it was barely even ash. _"One to go,"_ she fiercely thought, turning to pick up the remaining shard.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you," a female voice called from behind her.

Okuni whipped around, and immediately found herself reaching for the dagger in her parasol as the girl now standing before her observed, "Nothing might happen, but you also might suck both of us into the spirit realm."

She didn't look to be much older than Okuni, but Okuni knew better by now than to be fooled by that. The girl's impossibly long black hair was partially up in an elaborate bun that made even some of Lady No's hairstyles appear tame, with the rest in a braid that fell past her hips. Beneath her deep crimson half cloak, she wore unadorned black trousers that clung tightly to her long legs, and matching black boots. Okuni didn't doubt that the girl knew perfectly well how to utilize every one of the several knives strapped across her thighs.

"Who are you?" Okuni asked. The girl's clothing was similar to the garb of Viperia's assassins, but Okuni didn't recognize her as any soldier of Lady Nene's. The girl's turquoise eyes were distinguishing enough, and Okuni definitely hadn't seen anyone in the castle with a gaze like that until now.

The girl raised her hands, making a show of proving that they were empty. "Someone you've caught the interest of, miko," she responded. When Okuni remained in place, the girl tilted her head, casually resting one hand on her hip. "My name is Izumi, if that helps."

"I don't believe that I've had the pleasure," Okuni said. "If you know anything about what's happened here today, you'll have to forgive me if I seem unfriendly."

As a shaft of sunlight emerged from behind the gray clouds, Okuni received all the confirmation she needed that Izumi was some sort of spirit. Even the best-trained ninjas still cast shadows when they moved.

Izumi didn't seem to be fazed by the hostility in Okuni's voice. "You say that now," she insisted. "But I think that we have more in common than you suspect." She unclasped her cloak, letting it fall beside her to reveal a belt of throwing stars over a sleeveless black top. A grin broke over her face as she saw Okuni's eyes widen at the sight of her bare arms. "Isn't that right, shinigami?"

Dozens of scarlet amaryllis flowers wound their way up both of Izumi's arms, their tattooed vines the unmistakable work of spirit magic. "I confess, most of these are my own handiwork," Izumi acknowledged. "This one is the only one that Yoko gave me." She rested her fingers over one slightly brighter flower than the rest, inked just below her left shoulder. Her eyes fell to where Okuni could feel her own shinigami tattoo visible beneath her shirt. "So, what's your story?" Izumi asked.

This had to be some sort of trick. Counting Yoko, there had been eight shinigami in Ransei before Okuni, and Okuni had met all of them at some point or another. Izumi was not one of them.

"Who _are_ you?" Okuni repeated, Scolipede and Larvesta moving behind her into attack stances.

Izumi sighed. "I was worried that you were going to be like this." Faster than Okuni could blink, the shrine maiden felt something fly past her cheek, barely missing Scolipede in the process. Now down one throwing star, Izumi held out her hands invitingly. "Now's your last chance to hear me out," she encouraged.

Okuni unsheathed the dagger from her parasol, and Izumi smirked, sliding a _kaiken_ from its sheath on her right leg. "If that's really how you want this to be," she began. Pointing the knife towards Okuni, Izumi called, "You have something that isn't yours, miko. And unfortunately, the only way that I can make certain my lady gets it back is by killing you."

Izumi moved so quickly that she had to have trained as a ninja in her life. Her eyes locked onto Okuni's as she sprinted forward, launching herself into a flip just as Okuni tried to lunge forward with her own dagger. Okuni whirled around, only to barely lean back in time to avoid Izumi's knife slashing across her throat.

Larvesta shot a burst of flames at Izumi, but the dark-haired girl laughed, moving out of their reach with such controlled grace that Okuni could have mistaken her for a dancer. "You'll have to do better than that," she taunted Okuni.

 _"Change tactics,"_ Okuni thought. _"Don't engage her like you would a human."_ Now that she was better prepared, Okuni was able to see Izumi's free hand snap up as she made to throw another star Okuni's way. Allowing her instincts to carry her, Okuni threw herself to the side as she heard the silver clatter across the rooftop. Two could play at that game.

Plucking one of the spikes attached to her parasol off of the fabric, Okuni threw it towards Izumi. Her own aim wasn't nearly as practiced, and it missed Izumi by several feet, but Okuni still saw the dark-haired girl's eyes shift as she re-assessed Okuni. "Oh, I like it when my opponents fight!" she exclaimed.

Scolipede took the opportunity to launch another spike her way, and Okuni felt a spark of satisfaction as Izumi leaped back, now with a tear along the side of her shirt. It wasn't much more than a graze, but at least Izumi wasn't completely invulnerable.

Izumi's next attack finally brought their blades clashing off of each other, and it quickly became apparent to Okuni that this girl had already observed a startling amount of information about the way Okuni fought. Okuni made the mistake of flinching when Izumi's blade came dangerously close to her face, and Izumi took the opportunity to jump back, throwing another star as she did so that caught Okuni in the shoulder. Okuni cried out in pain, but Izumi had thankfully not struck her dominant arm.

"Yes, I suspect that will hurt more than a typical shuriken would," Izumi professed sympathetically. "It isn't poisoned if that's a concern of yours, but my weapons are nevertheless fortified in ways humans could only dream of."

"Good to know," Okuni grunted as she pulled the throwing star free. She began to run forward, ignoring the blood trickling down her arm. Okuni threw herself towards Izumi, all the strength she possessed in her body behind the thrust. Izumi brought her own dagger up, the two girls staring each other down behind their respective blades. Okuni expected to see the killer's gleam in that turquoise gaze. She wasn't expecting the maddening smirk, as though Izumi knew something that Okuni didn't.

Before she could order Scolipede or Larvesta to attack the dark-hared girl again, Okuni felt a burst of pain in her side as Izumi slipped a second dagger from its sheath and sunk it into Okuni's flesh. Only an unconscious shift of Okuni's body at the last moment had prevented the knife from having a direct path to her lungs.

Still, the pain was incredible. Izumi clearly sensed that she had gained the upper hand, and the price of Okuni throwing herself downwards to avoid the bite of either dagger in Izumi's hands was the dark-haired girl straddling over her, pinning Okuni's legs between her own.

"I wonder if we'll be meeting again in the afterlife," she mused as she slid a dagger that Okuni recognized from a sheath at her hip. It was the same _tantō_ that had nearly killed Hoshiko back when she had still been... well, not the Hoshiko that Okuni had known. Izumi reached out towards where Scolipede and Larvesta stood, and Okuni could only watch helplessly as they were immobilized by some dark magic.

"Farewell for now, miko," Izumi grinned, raising the knife above her head. Okuni braced herself for the end as the metal of the blade gleamed with its own sinister light. Then, Izumi froze, seizing up as a current of electricity ran along her body.

"You will not touch her!" a new voice, a new voice that Okuni blessedly recognized, shouted.

Izumi snarled in frustration as she stood to face Lady Ginchiyo, who was striding across the rooftop with the fury of a hurricane in her gray eyes. "You just couldn't wait one minute more, could you?" Izumi complained. "What are you even doing up here?"

Sparks ran along Luxray's coat as Lady Ginchiyo's eyes narrowed. "Stopping you," she spat.

Izumi looked between Lady Ginchiyo and Okuni, who had taken the opportunity to regain her footing, then muttered a curse. "When next we meet, I doubt you'll find yourself in the company of such fortunate allies again, miko," she grinned at Okuni. Before either woman could move, Izumi dissolved into shadow, carried away on the wind as easily as a feather.

Okuni let out a hiss as she brought her hand to the wound in her side. "How badly did she hurt you?" Lady Ginchiyo asked, tearing her eyes from the spot where Izumi had been standing.

"I think I'll live," Okuni panted. "But what are you doing here, my lady? How did you know that I was in trouble?"

Lady Ginchiyo looked just as confused as Okuni felt, and Okuni realized that the Electric warlord's eyes were strangely dilated. "I'm not entirely certain I could tell you how," she answered as the magic holding Scolipede and Larvesta broke and they rushed to Okuni's side. "I was speaking with Lady Aya in the throne room, when I suddenly just felt that something was... wrong. If there's one thing I know I can trust in this world, it's my own instincts. I let that sense guide me up here."

Well, it was bizarre, but Okuni wasn't about to complain. "It seems that I'm in your debt, then, my lady," she said. "You saw for yourself. If you hadn't ordered your Luxray to attack right when you did, I'm not sure I would be standing here."

"Yes, Lady Aya will want to know that the castle may still be at risk," Lady Ginchiyo murmured. Her eyes slid back to Okuni, and Okuni saw them turn suspicious. "But what were you doing up here?" Lady Ginchiyo asked. "I seem to recall you being in the atrium not too long ago."

She could hardly tell Lady Ginchiyo the truth. "I needed some space to clear my head," Okuni lied. The unspoken _"on the castle roof, five floors up"_ was echoed well enough in Lady Ginchiyo's scoff, but she didn't pry Okuni for more details.

"I might advise against going off on your own again," Lady Ginchiyo warned. "Especially since one battle clearly wasn't enough for some of our enemies."

"Don't worry, my lady, I'm not planning on it," Okuni shuddered.

More footsteps sounded from the stairs onto the roof, and Lady Aya was the next to appear. "Lady Ginchiyo? Why in all seventeen kingdoms did you run all the way up..." She trailed off as she saw Okuni, and Okuni momentarily feared that she was about to be sent off the same way Lady No had been. Then Lady Aya seemed to realize that Okuni was injured, and all misgivings left her eyes.

"Why don't we all reconvene in the throne room?" she offered to Okuni. "You can receive medical attention for your wounds, and Lady Ginchiyo can enlighten me about what exactly has happened here."

As they descended back into the castle, Okuni looked back at where the second half of the pendulum had been laying. Her heart sank when she saw that had vanished along with Izumi. But if the dark-haired girl had taken it with her, it was too late to do anything about that now.

 _"I don't like this at all,"_ Okuni communicated to Scolipede and Larvesta. As soon as she had the opportunity, she was going to have to conduct some research of her own.

Okuni had prepared herself to face all kinds of enemies, but a rogue shinigami possessing all the powers of a demon had not been one of them.


	17. Chapter 17

_**Chapter 16**_

The day after the battle dawned in a gray haze. Overhead, the stone-colored clouds had blocked any moonlight from reaching the interior of Illusio's castle during the night, and even as the sun rose, everything was still cast in a fittingly muted palette. At some point before dawn, a steady drizzle that showed no sign of relenting had begun pouring from the sky as well. It made Ina grateful that Lord Kenshin's funeral was going to be taking place inside the castle. Not because of the weather itself, but because it called to mind too many memories of the last funeral that she had attended.

Even before the weather worsened, Ina had gotten precious little sleep the night before. Every time she closed her eyes, all she could see was that final sight of Lord Kenshin.

Ina had been fighting alongside Valora's troops when the cliffs began to fall, and in the initial chaos to flee, she had become separated from Tadakatsu. She, along with the warriors from Valora still on the field, had done their best to regroup under Lord Ieyasu. Shortly afterwards, the aerial units from Avia had begun swooping down from above, carrying what warriors they could to safety. But while Ina could have likely been flown off the field if she had only been with Quagsire, Prinplup's added bulk was simply too much for any of the Flying Pokemon remaining in fit shape for battlefield rescue.

Waiting for the return of a Psychic warrior who could teleport them off of the field had almost been worse than the actual battle. Ina, Lord Ieyasu, and two other warriors had been left beneath the cliffs as the battlefield grew increasingly more unstable. One warrior had been about to attempt running for the bridge when the ground splintered in front of them, barely two yards ahead. At the same time, the cliff directly above them had begun to groan, raining small shards of crystal down upon them.

Hearing shouts from nearby, Ina had turned to see a flash of light as a pair of warriors from Illusio frantically tried to reach them. But in spite of their best efforts, they were moving too slowly - unlike with the first wave of survivors, the battlefield had grown too treacherous to be teleported across in one go. They weren't going to make it in time.

"Go!" Ina had heard Lord Ieyasu shout. For a moment, she had been confused. Then Ina had realized that the Steel warlord was waving to her, to his remaining few men. "Meet them halfway! Aggron and I will be right behind you once you get to safety!"

She had been about to ask Lord Ieyasu how he could be so certain that he would be able to follow. But as she had looked into his eyes, Ina had realized - Lord Ieyasu was fully prepared to sacrifice himself here and now, if it meant a better chance that his men would live. It was an expression Ina had seen before, one that slowed the world around her to an almost-halt until the warrior next to her grabbed her wrist.

Ina had felt her feet moving as she half ran and was half pulled towards the warriors from Illusio. But she couldn't stop looking back at what she had realized could be her final sight of Lord Ieyasu, the man who had done so much for her and her father.

It wasn't right for it to end like this. And as if he had been summoned by Ina thinking so, Lord Kenshin and his Gallade had appeared from out of nowhere just as the cliff began to crash down over Lord Ieyasu.

The Psychic warlord and his partner had moved as one, thrusting their hands outward - Lord Kenshin to take Lord Ieyasu's place, and Gallade to send out the pulse that had enveloped Lord Ieyasu and Aggron, sending them to safety. The world around Ina had warped, and the crumbling battlefield went out of focus. But not before she had seen Lord Kenshin's final moments.

He had turned his face upwards as the shadow of the cliff descended upon him. His lips had moved in a final statement - a prayer? A vow to someone else, or himself? Ina couldn't be sure. But she was certain that she had screamed as the jagged crystal enclosed Lord Kenshin, his reflection speared on every glittering shard that flew into the air. And then her feet were on solid ground, and as Ina saw Lord Ieyasu, she had realized that nobody had witnessed it but them.

Gallade must have used the last of its strength to send Lord Kenshin back. It was the only explanation for why there was a body that they had all gathered to seal away beneath the castle this morning.

Lady Aya led the procession of warlords as they descended into the crypt of Illusio's castle, her body clad all in black with sleeves that trailed along the floor behind her. Kanetsugu and Lord Shingen followed her closely, with the rest of the warlords who had stayed filing in after them. Ina had to wonder why Okuni was here, but not Lady No. It certainly seemed odd that even Lord Nobunaga had remained for this, but not his closest general.

The farthest that Ina had ventured into the castle's lower levels before now had been the baths. The crypt was located at the very bottom of the prism that was Illusio's castle, giving the impression that the entire structure was "built" on the warlords who had come before. Apparently, it was unconventional for Lady Aya to have opened the funeral to more than a select few members of the Psychic kingdom's court. Despite the fact that Lord Ieyasu had been a longtime ally of Lord Kenshin's predecessor, Tadakatsu had told Ina, word of his death had not even reached Valora until over half a week afterwards.

Unsure as she was of what exactly a royal funeral in Illusio contained, Ina's thoughts couldn't help but wander back to the day of Asahi's funeral as she wound down the stairs beside her father. Lord Ieyasu had finally told her the entire story of her mother's death on its anniversary the previous year before.

An extremely powerful warrior in Lord Ieyasu's service who had possessed an affinity for Water-Types had gone rogue. Over twenty years of neverending war had driven him mad, and he came to believe it was Lord Ieyasu's fault for not doing more to end Valora's role in the conflict. Disregarding the damage that it inflicted upon his own mind, he set about linking with as many Water Pokemon in the harbor surrounding Valora as he could. One day, he commanded all of them to unleash a storm upon Valora the likes of which the city could have never hoped to be prepared for.

Asahi had volunteered to lead the force to stop him. Ina had been seven years old as she watched her mother and father walk into the storm that even the castle's walls were barely managing to hold back - the sound of its howling gales rattling against the windows and thunder booming like a terrible demon's laughter had at one point left Ina cowering under her bed, convinced the castle was about to be blown away. Even now, thunderstorms still brought back memories that made Ina feel like that helpless child again. That helpless child who at first had not understood what was happening when only her father returned to the throne room, carrying his wife's broken bow in his hands.

The savior of Valora, Asahi had been called in the aftermath of that day. In spite of the wind and the rain that had beaten back every other member of the Valora guard, Asahi had kept firing her arrows until there were none left. Not even the lightning strike that split her bow in two had been able to stop her, it was said. She had challenged the rogue warrior to single combat, and only with his dying breath did he order the Pokemon still under his control to drown Asahi. But not even she had been able to survive being enveloped in a globe of water the size of a house. No amount of gratitude after the fact could empty the water from her lungs and breathe life back into her body.

When the stairs finally ended, they abruptly cut off almost immediately before a tall pair of doors. The crystal that made up the walls had grown slowly darker in hue as they descended, and what had been a vibrant pink quartz in the atrium was now almost onyx. The doors opened before Lady Aya without the dark-haired woman having to move, and Ina barely caught her breath in time at her first sight of the crypt.

It seemed impossible that the cavern the warlords now stood before could fit inside the narrow point that was the bottom of the castle. But then again, Illusio was the Psychic kingdom. Perhaps whatever powers kept the castle floating in the sky could also manipulate the space within it to a certain extent. Whatever the case, Ina could barely believe her own eyes as she took in the crypt of Illusio for the first time.

A walkway of dark stone stretched out before them, wide enough to accommodate three people walking side by side. And surrounding it on both sides were crystals - massive crystals that shone in every color, each with its own small shrine set before it, their soft glows providing the only illumination within the crypt. The ceiling was easily the same height as that of the throne room's, if not higher, and was so shrouded in shadow that Ina couldn't even make out the tops of the walls. The scale of it was so overwhelming that she needed a moment to close her eyes and breathe in.

Ina felt Tadakatsu gently push her forward, and she hastily joined her fellow warriors as they entered the crypt. When they passed the first of the crystals, Ina wasn't able to help it this time - she sucked in a surprised breath, although she heard it echoed by Kai right beside her. There was a person inside each crystal, each so perfectly still that Ina might have believed them to be sleeping if she had been unaware of this room's purpose. So this was how Illusio honored its fallen warlords.

Once she was past the initial shock of it, Ina did feel a slight morbid curiosity to look closer at the bodies sealed within the crystals. Was it another unique power of the castle's that kept them from decaying, she wondered?

Even though Ina felt as though this all should be reminding her of her ill-fated adventure beneath Spectra's castle, she at the same time didn't feel any darkness coming from this room like what she had felt in the summoning chamber. Maybe "calming" wasn't exactly the right word, but as Ina imagined what it must be like to be alone in this massive cavern, surrounded by nothing but silence and the muted rainbow light of the crystals... it made the idea of being the only living person in a room full of dead bodies not nearly as frightening as it would normally seem.

When Lady Aya came to a halt at the front of the procession, there was more space for the warlords to spread out before the newest crystal among the ranks of two thousand years' worth. The crystal was empty as of now, although Ina suspected that the white shroud lying before it contained Lord Kenshin's body.

Lady Aya knelt before the crystal, resting her hands atop the shroud. Ina saw her lips moving, and although Lady Aya was whispering too quietly for Ina to make out any individual words, the sound nonetheless filled the cavern, ringing between the crystals and echoing in the space of the ceiling.

Ina watched, transfixed, as a soft glow began to emanate from within the crystal. Its light slowly but steadily intensified, warming from a pink so pale it was nearly white to the shade of cherry blossoms in full bloom. If Ina looked closer, she could have sworn she was able to see the individual flowers carved out of the stone.

Lady Aya lifted her head, and in the light of the crystal, Ina could see the glisten of tears on her cheek. As the radiance within the heart of the crystal gleamed golden, the shroud lying before it sagged, the fabric falling limp on the floor. At the same moment, Lord Kenshin's form appeared within the crystal, the massive sword he had carried into battle eternally clutched in his hands. In one final burst of light, a new shrine appeared at the foot of the crystal, topped with a dragon carved out of the stone.

Each warlord stepped forward to pay their respects, those who had been close to Lord Kenshin offering short eulogies. When it was Lord Shingen's turn, he rested a hand atop the stone dragon, his face uncharacteristically solemn. Looking up at Lord Kenshin within the crystal, the Ground warlord shook his head. "You know, for all the times that we butted heads... it never crossed my mind that one day it would end. Certainly not like this."

When Ina knelt down in front of the shrine, she wasn't entirely certain of what to do. She had been too young for this at Asahi's funeral. Closing her eyes, Ina thought, _"If you can hear me, Lord Kenshin, thank you. You shouldn't have needed to die to save us. I hope that your soul is at peace."_ It wasn't much, but Ina knew whatever else she could say couldn't possibly measure up to the debt she owed Lord Kenshin. Rising, she bowed to the crystal before moving to stand by Okuni on the sidelines.

Both girls were silent for a moment. Then, Okuni softly murmured so that only Ina could hear, "Hoshiko... she didn't make it, either. It's been a full day, and you're the first person who I've told."

The shrine maiden was resolutely staring forward as Ina turned towards her, refusing to meet Ina's eyes. Nevertheless, Ina could see the regret on Okuni's face. Searching for the right words, she responded, "I'm - I'm sorry to hear that. I think that we could have been friends, if we'd had more time."

Okuni nodded. "I think so, too."

So much death all around. If there was this much sorrow that Ina could feel over a warlord she had never served and a priestess she had barely known, Ina couldn't even imagine the state Tadakatsu must have been in after Asahi's death, or what Lady Aya was feeling now.

"This wasn't right," Ina whispered, clenching her fists at her side. If this were one of the legends that she had grown up hearing, Ransei's forces would have been able to beat those demons back without the loss of the battlefield or Lord Kenshin.

Or maybe there had been just as much sadness behind all of those legends, the parts of the story that nobody wished to be reminded of when they retold it for future generations. That was always what seemed to motivate those heroes, after all; grief, love, or some combination of the two.

Ina thought that she understood those heroes now more than she had before.

* * *

In the hours following the funeral, the warlords dispersed one by one, some heading directly for the airfield while others intended to stay in Illusio one more night. The knowledge that she could simply teleport back to Spectra whenever she so chose didn't leave Okuni in too much of a rush to return to the Ghost kingdom. She still had questions on her mind that she felt could be better answered in Illusio.

Come evening, Okuni found Motonari exactly where she had hoped the Grass warlord would be, sequestered in the castle library. While Greenleaf boasted the most extensive archives overall in Ransei, Illusio's were hardly anything to scoff at. The Psychic kingdom had always been renowned as a patron of the arts, and in the rare occasion that there was a text one couldn't find in Greenleaf's library, it was likely resting somewhere on the shelves of Illusio's.

Motonari looked up from the scroll he had been reading as he heard Okuni's approach. "I'm glad to see you're alright," he began as Okuni sat down beside him.

"You as well," she responded. Motonari sported a few red scratches across the backs of his hands, but if there was anything worse concealed beneath his coat, he didn't let on. "Greenleaf's losses weren't heavy, were they?"

"Thankfully, no," the Grass warlord sighed. "But it's only because the council of scholars was against getting involved at all. After Lady Rei took the time to personally come to Greenleaf and request our aid though, I wasn't going to refuse her. I compromised with them by bringing a smaller delegation than I would have liked to contribute. How did Spectra fare?"

"Similarly enough," Okuni said. "Although today wasn't exactly how I imagined what my first time acting as Lady No's representative would be."

Motonari thankfully didn't ask after what circumstances could have motivated Lady No to depart Illusio without even so much as a condolence towards Lady Aya, but Okuni had seen several other warlords glancing at her with suspicion during the funeral when they thought she hadn't been looking. The fact that the only other warlord who had left in the immediate aftermath of the battle had been Lord Kotaro only made the situation look that much worse.

After a short silence, Okuni decided to redirect the conversation back to why she had come. "If you're not up to it right now, I would completely understand, but I could use your help researching something again," she inquired.

"If it's going to be anywhere near as intensive as tracking down Mizukihime was, I'll be glad for the excuse to take my mind off things for a few hours," Motonari answered. "What are we investigating this time?"

Grateful to have the Grass warlord's assistance, Okuni told him the full story of her confrontation with Izumi on the roof. "I know there's not as much background information as we had with Mizukihime, but can you think of anything I might be able to use to learn more about her?"

Thinking for a moment, Motonari started with, "You said her clothes looked like they came from Viperia?"

"That's right," Okuni recalled. "What's so significant about that?" She could practically see the gears in Motonari's head beginning to turn.

"Well, until around two hundred years ago, it was only Yaksha that trained assassins. Even now, the majority of ninjas based out of Viperia wind up becoming bodyguards, and this Izumi definitely doesn't sound like she fought with a defensive style of combat. Plus, a bodyguard wouldn't need to be so heavily armed."

So Okuni had guessed correctly in that aspect. "Two hundred years still leaves a lot unaccounted for, though," she frowned. "Even if we assume that she became a spirit before I took up the shinigami mantle, I wasn't anywhere near Viperia for the fifty years that leaves us with. Unless there's a roster of every Viperia-based assassin conveniently lying around somewhere, we're going to have to take another approach."

"I would ask Lady Nene about that one, not me," Motonari joked, and Okuni laughed in spite of the dead end.

"Give me a few minutes, and I can try calling up the predecessor of her predecessor," she commented. "Then we might be onto something."

It always felt strange to talk so freely of her shinigami duties when she was with Motonari, but at the same time, Okuni did enjoy having one person in her life who knew the complete truth about her. She had once wondered how different the past three years might have been if she had wound up Motonari's junior warlord instead of Lady No's, although Motonari had never made her the offer.

"I think I've had my fill of spirits for a good long while," Motonari observed. "Present company excluded, of course."

"No offense taken, since as we've gone over before, _I'm_ not a spirit," Okuni reminded him. "My body has all the same physical limitations as yours, although I can't say I'd turn up my nose at being able to fly around wherever I please, become invisible, and walk through walls."

"Of course, my apologies," Motonari acknowledged. His face turning thoughtful, he added, "Although speaking of spirits, I actually stumbled across something else regarding Mizukihime that I found curious." Turning to his bag lying on the table, Motonari rummaged through it and retrieved several books.

"Before you get too excited, I talked with her and it didn't go well," Okuni warned. "I pushed her too far with questions about her past. Let's just say it's not something I think I'm in a position to try again right now."

Unfazed, Motonari set about opening each book to pre-marked pages, taking up half the table in the process. The only one Okuni recognized was the book of ancestry records that they had first discovered Tsukiyama in. Motonari saw her eyeing it and nodded.

"As I'm sure you remember, that book - the official genealogy records of every royal family in Ransei - listed Mizukihime as the only child of Illusio's warlord at the time. This is corroborated by several other historical texts." He pointed to two other books opened to illustrations of similarly elaborate family trees that the mere sight of gave Okuni a headache. Continuing over to a smaller, significantly more beat-up book, Motonari drew Okuni's attention to a scrawled passage.

"But this says otherwise. It's the journal of a priestess who lived in Illusio the same time that Mizukihime was alive. I found it by sheer coincidence, I was just doing an inventory of the library when I stumbled across it. And right here, she wrote that Illusio had been blessed by the birth of _twin_ girls."

"Twins?" Okuni repeated. "I feel like that would have been mentioned in official records. Are you positive this isn't some sort of mix-up?"

Motonari nodded. "If you look at the date on the passage, it matches up with Mizukihime's listed date of birth. And it doesn't end there. After reading that, my thought process was similar to yours, so I started going back through whatever records I could find in Greenleaf's library of the time period. These two -" he gestured to another pair of books in similar shape as the priestess' journal - "also mentioned a second princess being born alongside Mizukihime."

Okuni realized the significance of what Motonari was implying. "So for some reason, somebody made an effort to erase the existence of this twin sister from all official historical records... but they weren't able to destroy everything."

"Indeed," Motonari confirmed. "The only question is - why?"

As Okuni reflected on the behavior Tsukiyama had exhibited leading up to her breakdown, she was struck with an idea. "I can think of a reason why," Okuni began. "But in order to confirm it-" Before she could voice her theory, a shout from the corridor outside drew both Okuni and Motonari's attention.

"What was that?" Motonari asked, Serperior slithering out from behind a shelf to coil up aggressively beside him.

"Nothing that sounds good," Okuni responded as the steady pound of rushing footsteps greeted both their ears. The library took up most of the castle's ring-shaped third floor, the center of which was open to look down on the throne room below. Okuni rushed out, not even having to lean over the banister before she recognized the sound of Kanetsugu's voice echoing up into the levels of the castle.

"All available soldiers, report to the ground access warp immediately! There has been an attack in the city!"

 _"Another attack? So soon?"_ Okuni could see the thought echoed on Motonari's face as they raced down the nearest flight of stairs. The ground access warp was located just off of the atrium, and served as one of the main reasons Illusio's castle was infamously difficult to take. As the name suggested, it was the only way in or out of the castle if one didn't possess an airship at their disposal, making surprise attacks almost impossible.

But the city itself was located on the ground, a far easier target for an enemy that only sought to mindlessly destroy.

A crowd had formed in the atrium as soldiers from several different kingdoms rushed to aid their allies already on the ground, and Okuni was debating whether or not teleporting herself and her Pokemon into the city on her own would be faster when she noticed something odd. Amid the commotion, Lady Aya and Lady Ginchiyo seemed to be engaged in their own fierce discussion by the doors to the throne room, Lady Ginchiyo's hand pressed to her forehead and face twisted in a grimace.

Pushing her way closer to the two warlords, Okuni's concern spiked as she saw that Lady Ginchiyo's eyes were dilated the same way they had been during her fit in the throne room the day before. And on the rooftop, as she had explained to Okuni the strange force that had helped her sense Izumi's presence...

"What do you mean, you have to leave?" Okuni heard Lady Aya protest as Okuni ducked behind a column near the women. "Illusio is under attack!"

"Believe me, I'm quite aware!" Lady Ginchiyo hissed. "If you still hold to that theory you came up with yesterday, I daresay I knew it before anyone else in this castle!"

That definitely caught Okuni's interest. After Lady Ginchiyo had saved her from Izumi, Okuni's wounds had been tended to while Lady Ginchiyo informed Lady Aya about what had happened. When Lady Aya had asked for Okuni's story, Okuni had given her a partial truth similar to the one she had told Lady Ginchiyo. Lady Aya had dismissed her afterwards, but on her way out, Okuni had seen the dark-haired woman in deep thought before Lady Aya had turned and said something to Lady Ginchiyo. Could that have been what their current discussion was referencing?

"Yes, but why right now?" Lady Aya repeated. "Surely you can wait to recall your troops until after the city is secured?"

"I already told you, that's not an option!" Lady Ginchiyo insisted. "It's not just in Illusio that this is happening right now! It's everywhere!"

Okuni's blood turned to ice at the sound of the surety in Lady Ginchiyo's voice. How could she possibly know that, Okuni wanted to tell herself. And yet, how could Lady Ginchiyo have possibly known where Izumi was despite having never seen her before?

Whatever response Lady Aya gave was drowned out by the blood beginning to rush in Okuni's ears. If Lady Ginchiyo was right, and more kingdoms than just Illusio were at stake tonight, that meant Spectra was in danger as well. And yet.

Did Okuni even want a place in the Ghost kingdom? Lady No had certainly made it seem as though she expected Okuni to go her own way after this battle. In fact, Lady No was right, why had Okuni kept crafting excuses to stay in Spectra when nothing was tying her there? Lady No had given her an open invitation to return to the life she had always lived before Spectra's interruption. Wasn't that what Okuni had wanted?

But Okuni wasn't going to lie to herself, either. She had come to care for Spectra in the time that she had spent there, and perhaps in the past six months even begun to think of it as more than just a temporary situation. Was she ready to confront what making the purposeful decision to remain in the Ghost kingdom would mean, though? And could things ever be the same between her and Lady No after they had been so frank with each other? Okuni didn't know the answer to that, either. Just that the two paths now set before her would take her future in entirely different directions.

Stay in Illusio, and close the chapter that had been the last three years of her life? Or return to Spectra, with no idea of what would come next from doing so? Okuni heard the sound of Motonari calling her name, and looked down at Larvesta. In that moment, she felt the truth in their wavelength. Okuni was no longer the same person she had been three years ago. And she could not abandon the kingdom, or the warlord, that had caused that change.

Taking hold of Scolipede and Larvesta, Okuni prepared to teleport them as Motonari appeared from the crowd, clearly having been searching for her. Confusion crossed over his features as he realized what Okuni was about to do, and Okuni wished she had time to explain. Meeting Motonari's eyes, she advised, "Get back to Greenleaf as soon as you can." She hated to think of the pain that great library being destroyed would cause her friend.

Before Motonari could respond, Okuni closed her eyes. She imagined the square of Spectra's city where she had first met Lady No three summers ago, where her life had never been the same since. The commotion inside the atrium of Illusio's castle faded, and for a moment, all Okuni felt in the world was her wavelength in perfect harmony with Scolipede and Larvesta. Then she smelled the smoke.

Opening her eyes, Okuni was momentarily rooted to the spot by the sudden assault on her senses. She was undoubtedly standing in the city square of Spectra, but everywhere she looked, buildings that Okuni passed by every day as she went about her duties were now consumed in flames. The smoke polluted the night air, snaking its way into Okuni's lungs as she gasped at the sound of screams. Even the half moon in the sky was dyed red by the light of the fires, and Okuni had to force her attention back to what was in front of her. Whatever had done this couldn't be far.

"Scolipede, Larvesta, let's go!" she called. Okuni started off towards the barracks, taking the shortcut she knew by heart through the business district of the city. Within moments, the first demon fell on her. A spike from Scolipede intercepted it before it could even touch Okuni, impaling it straight through the chest.

Unsheathing her dagger from her parasol as she continued running, Okuni met the next demon that she crossed head-on with help from Larvesta. The connection she felt with her perfect link now was as close to complete as most warriors ever experienced, and Okuni felt that _something_ about Larvesta's wavelength had definitely grown stronger ever since the battle, although she couldn't quite put her finger on what.

But where was the bond that they had shared for those few minutes on the battlefield in Illusio? Okuni tried to recall exactly what she had felt when she channeled it the first time, but wherever that spark had come from, it was escaping her now.

 _"Can you hear me, piece of Hoshiko?"_ Okuni thought as she raced down the empty streets. She wasn't sure whether or not to be relieved by the fact that she had yet to encounter any civilians. _"If you're in there, now would be a great time to turn on again."_

Okuni finally began to see more warriors from Spectra as she emerged from an alleyway into the heart of the clothiers district. Those with more durable Pokemon as their links were engaging the demons in combat, while the younger and less experienced warriors helped civilians to safety - they were moving in the direction of the castle, Okuni realized. Of course, the entire castle was wrapped in centuries of wards against malevolent spirits, Lady No's own being some of the strongest. Okuni doubted that any of the demons she had encountered thus far would stand a chance at getting inside.

A cry for help came from a nearby kimono shop that Okuni had accompanied Lady No to several times, its windows now all shattered. Okuni ran inside as soon as the coast was clear, calling out for the seamstress who worked there. A pained groan from beneath a pile of what had once been mannequins was her only answer.

Shifting enough rubble aside to uncover the semi-conscious seamstress, Okuni coughed out, "Scolipede, make sure she gets to the castle! Larvesta and I will meet you there!" Okuni and Scolipede worked together to lift the seamstress onto Scolipede's back, then separated as Okuni and Larvesta continued moving towards the barracks.

Lady No's back was turned when Okuni first saw her silhouetted against the flames, but there was only one person in Ransei who fought the way that Lady No did. The Ghost warlord held herself with the poise of a skilled martial artist as she alternated between skewering demons on the claws hidden beneath her sleeves and compelling the ones that remained to turn on each other.

The latter was fascinating enough to watch that Okuni couldn't help but pause for a moment. Lady No had explained the process to Okuni once; her powers allowed her to impose her will on demons the same way that she could normal spirits, although the cost was far more strenuous. However, tonight had clearly left Lady No with few other options. When she and Mismagius had finished off the last of the demons in their way, they ran up the steps of the burning building that stood before them - Spectra's temple of Arceus, Okuni realized. Judging by the shouts coming from inside, the priestesses within were trapped.

Running after Lady No, Okuni didn't make it far inside before a burning beam fell in front of her, blocking off the main path to the sanctuary and barely missing Okuni in the process. The building was in real danger of falling down around them all, Okuni realized with a start of panic. It had been some time since she had been inside Spectra's temple, but its layout was blessedly easy to remember. There were other ways into the sanctuary, where the cries for help were coming from.

"Here's hoping this isn't going to get us both killed," Okuni muttered to Larvesta as she picked her partner up. Taking off down the only path left to her, Okuni followed the hallway until she reached the door opening on the main temple courtyard. If her memory served her, the gardens should offer another entrance into the sanctuary, as well as some relief from the stifling air of the smoke-filled corridors.

The scent of the garden's burning peach trees caught Okuni off guard, overpowering her for a moment when she stepped outside. Once more, her mind threatened to take her back to that cursed garden inside the Gates, and Okuni had to remind herself of where she was in the present. _"You're in Spectra. You're in control."_

"I'm in Spectra," she repeated out loud, her head still spinning from the smoke inside the temple. "I'm going to help those priestesses."

"Are you now?"

Okuni's eyes snapped open at the familiar silvery voice, and Larvesta gave a hostile cry at its sound, squirming out of Okuni's arms and igniting its ruff. _"No, not here."_

The flames blocking the path in front of Okuni parted for the briefest moment, allowing Izumi to step forward from their midst. The dark-haired spirit looked to be in peak form, as though her and Okuni's first battle had never happened. In contrast, Okuni was painfully aware that her own lungs were taking in smoke with each heave of her chest, and although the medic in Illusio had healed the worst of the damage that Izumi had dealt to Okuni, all of the stress that the shrine maiden had put on the new scar in her side tonight had reopened the wound.

Izumi smiled as she advanced on Okuni, clearly sensing her opponent's weakened condition. "It's like I warned you, miko. Nobody is around to save you this time, unless they can walk through fire."

Faintly, Okuni was aware that the cries from the sanctuary had grown fewer, and could only pray that meant Lady No and Mismagius had reached the priestesses in time. Noticing Okuni looking past her, Izumi added, "Oh, I'll be dealing with them soon enough. But as we've already established, you're my top priority."

She lunged the moment the final word left her mouth, leaving Okuni precious little time to redraw her own weapon. As she faced Izumi's onslaught for the second time, Okuni realized with some horror that the dark-haired girl had been _holding back_ the day before. During their first battle, she had at least given Okuni a chance to retaliate each attack with one of her own. Now, her prior thwarting at the hands of Lady Ginchiyo had clearly left Izumi eager to finish Okuni off quickly.

Larvesta did its best to help Okuni block what attacks she could, shooting quick bursts of flame towards Izumi whenever the shinigami's feet touched the ground. But Okuni still felt the painful bite of steel into her bare arm as Izumi darted past her, her knife opening a straight crimson slice in the flesh of Okuni's upper arm.

Izumi's voice carried on the wind as she outmaneuvered Okuni at every step, laughing as she remarked, "Just think, my lady was able to deal this much damage tonight with the power she currently possesses. I can't even imagine what she'll be able to do once I offer her the last of it, fresh from you." She paused long enough for Okuni to see her turquoise eyes gleam with spite. "But personally, I think tearing Yoko down right alongside her castle would be a good place to start."

Okuni feinted right, managing to throw off Izumi's attack pattern, but made the mistake of facing the direction of the wind. Staggering backwards as smoke from the garden was blown into her eyes, Okuni was left wide open as she attempted to recover, and Izumi seized the opportunity.

Immobilizing Larvesta with the same magic that she had used before, Izumi leaped towards Okuni, hurling a throwing star that embedded itself in Okuni's shin and sent her falling to one knee. Waiting until Izumi closed in on her, Okuni made a desperate bid to duck and roll beneath the dark-haired girl's reach - one that miraculously succeeded. But she knew common tricks such as that were, in the long run, not going to be any match against a formally-trained assassin. Okuni was going to give out before Izumi, and both girls knew it. It was only a matter of how long it would take.

Locking eyes with Larvesta where her partner was glued to the ground, Okuni made one last attempt to reach for whatever they had shared in Illusio. If that was the power that Izumi desired so badly, why was Okuni now unable to access it when she needed it most?

But something else was reaching her, that strange new layer to Larvesta's wavelength that Okuni had been feeling all day. Ever since... the end of the battle. Okuni's eyes widened, realization of what it was striking her in a flash. If she was going to pull this off, she was going to have to play the loser just a little longer.

Hearing Izumi's footsteps behind her, Okuni rolled onto her back and improvised with all that was left to her - her parasol. As Okuni shoved it open, Izumi's blade sliced right through the fabric, its point stopping barely an inch from Okuni's eye. Okuni seized the opportunity to spring her last trap.

Pressing the button on the handle, Okuni felt the shudder of the parasol as every spike still attached to its cover sprang upwards, locking over the knife still embedded in the fabric. Okuni heard Izumi curse as she attempted to pull her dagger free, and Okuni let out a shout, throwing herself upwards and allowing her own body's force to drive the parasol towards Izumi. The dark-haired girl screamed as Okuni relinquished her hold on the shaft of the parasol and bought herself space to fall back.

Izumi tossed the remains of Okuni's parasol into the thickening flames, although it had done its damage; the dark-haired girl's left cheek, shoulder, and arm had all been cut by its spikes. Yet she forced her face into what Okuni assumed Izumi believed was a reassuring smile.

"You know, miko, my lady would welcome someone with your resourcefulness in her service," she proposed. "I can promise that she will treat you better than Yoko did either of us. If you surrender now, I'll make it so quick that you won't even believe you were killed."

This was the moment. Okuni only had one more ace up her sleeve, and she had to play it while she still had the strength. Spots were beginning to flicker before her eyes from the pain and the smoke, but Okuni was going to be damned if she let Izumi win now.

Forcing herself upright, Okuni stared Izumi down from across the courtyard. Taking a deep breath in, she imagined herself on a stage, taking her final bow of the night. Okuni could almost hear the applause on the air as Izumi sprinted towards her, _tantō_ at the ready. Syncing her wavelength with Larvesta's, Okuni refused to look at the obsidian blade flashing in the firelight, ready to sink into her chest.

"Now, Larvesta!" Okuni shouted out loud, and a blinding flash illuminated the courtyard.

A starburst of flames erupted between Okuni and Izumi, but unlike the fire that was consuming the temple, these were flames that Okuni knew well. Turning towards where Larvesta had been trapped by Izumi's magic, Okuni couldn't help but gasp as she saw the glow that was coming from her partner. She had known that it would happen, but it was still incredible as she watched her partner begin to grow in size.

In a final burst of light, Larvesta reared upwards as wings sprouted from its back. Okuni felt the same resonance with her partner now that she had first felt on that fateful night in Viperia fifteen years earlier - and when the light faded, Larvesta was gone. In its place was a Volcarona, and Okuni knew it was now or never to claim the advantage.

 _"Alright, Volcarona, let's see what you can do!"_ she commanded. Calling its own battle cry, Volcarona launched itself into the air, spinning in flight as it let off dozens of molten orange embers from its wings. Even though she had never seen the attack before, Okuni somehow knew what it was. _"Fiery Dance."_

The embers ignited as they fell to the ground, and Izumi cried out in shock as they scattered in a spiral around her, igniting her clothing and hair. "You're going to pay for this, miko!" she wailed, but she was left with no choice other than dissolving into smoke once more. The moment the dark-haired girl was gone, Volcarona ceased its attack, alighting on the ground. If Okuni had been on steadier feet, she would have thrown her arms around her partner then and there.

As it was, she pointed in the direction of the sanctuary. _"Clear a path through the flames!"_ she ordered, and Volcarona flapped its wings in a Gust that tore a hole right through the fire engulfing the courtyard. Okuni ran through the back entrance to the sanctuary as fast as her feet could carry her, the reassuring presence of Volcarona right alongside her the entire time. It was something more than magical, a sensation that Okuni doubted she would ever be able to perfectly describe.

Emerging from behind the altar, Okuni was just in time to come face-to-face with a pair of acolytes in soot-stained robes that bore a gut-wrenching resemblance to the ones Hoshiko had worn. Over the roar of the flames, Okuni was just able to hear Lady No's voice as the Ghost warlord turned in her direction. "Okuni?" she asked, her claws still half-unsheathed from her sleeves.

Okuni was positive that she looked like she had just walked through a war zone and then some, but Lady No recovered from her surprise quickly enough. "Well, since you're here, find a way to keep this room stable long enough for me and Mismagius to get these last two girls out."

Now that Okuni had Volcarona, this turned out to be a fairly simple task. Volcarona cleared a path to the door for Lady No to lead the acolytes down, and Okuni fed her partner as much of her wavelength's strength as she dared. _"Go in front of Lady No and make sure the entrance isn't blocked off,"_ Okuni dictated down their link. _"I'll take up the rear."_

Before leaving the sanctuary behind, Okuni glanced over her shoulder one last time at the spacious room. Spectra's temple was one of the smaller ones in Ransei, but the priestesses who lived here had put so much care into making it their own. It saddened Okuni to see all of their paintings and handiwork lost to the flames.

Hearing Lady No calling for her from the temple's entrance, Okuni turned to leave when she heard a soft, sinister laugh in the air around her. The wisps of smoke in the hall blew together to take the form of Izumi's silhouette - one of her arms now more covered in burns than blossoms, but very much alive. Looking towards where Lady No stood before bringing her gaze back to Okuni, Izumi's eyes lit up at the horror that crossed Okuni's face. "How interesting."

She brought her hands up, one seeming to command the flames that were already on the brink of engulfing the temple to a new height, and the other summoning a throwing knife with a blade far too similar to the one that had killed Hoshiko. Okuni realized what it was that Izumi was intending to do. "My lady!" she tried to call out in warning, but her voice was raspy from the smoke. There was no time to think.

"Lady No!" she screamed, shoving past Izumi just as the knife flew from her fingers towards the Ghost warlord. Okuni threw herself forward with all the strength she had left.

When the knife struck her in the back, Okuni felt as though she had been punched by a fist of ice. The breath was torn from her lungs in a single choked exhalation, and even as she heard Lady No frantically shout her name once more, Okuni felt her wavelength with Volcarona already beginning to slip away. Izumi disappeared behind her, knowing her job had at last been completed.

The last thing Okuni saw before the temple collapsed around her was Setsuna, standing just at the edge of her vision, dressed all in white.


	18. Chapter 18

_**Chapter 17**_

 _Even if Ginchiyo still wasn't entirely sure how she had known Lady No's junior warlord was in danger, she told Aya of all that she had seen, as well as the entirety of her newly-restored memories. When Ginchiyo reached her confrontation with the demon who had called herself their queen, Aya's eyes widened, a parting of the veil that had fallen over her in the aftermath of Lord Kenshin's death. In spite of all that had just occurred, the sight of it filled Ginchiyo with the same quiet relief as when Muneshige had emerged alive from the wreckage of the battlefield._

 _"She didn't kill you," Aya murmured. "Of course she didn't, if Violight was really of her sole engineering. The kind of power that attack would have taken..."_

 _Already, Ginchiyo was losing her grasp on the discussion. The finesses of magic were never something she had bothered to concern herself with. Violight was and always had been a kingdom of warriors, its warlords left the mysticism to kingdoms like Illusio and Spectra. Ginchiyo was already grappling with enough phenomenons that went far beyond what she felt comfortable dealing with, and it sounded as though whatever idea Aya was developing was only about to add to that list._

 _"Just tell me what's happening," Ginchiyo said bluntly. "There has to at least be a way I can control whatever it is. I can't have another fit like that in the middle of a battle."_

 _Aya remained silent in thought for another moment, then began with, "At its roots, it's likely the magic this queen demon used to seal your memories. That you were able to break free of its effect is a testament to your own strength, but the magic itself won't have gone away." This last addition did nothing to reassure Ginchiyo, but she nodded for Aya to continue._

 _"The danger that comes with any magic is that it can always be turned against its original wielder. And spiritwork is as close as one can come to magic in its most undiluted form, making it particularly unstable." Aya made no attempt to hide the grimace on her face as she said this, and Ginchiyo had to wonder what experiences Aya had known with this matter that could call up such a strong reaction. "I think that's what you've done, even if it wasn't your intention."_

 _There was what Ginchiyo had been dreading, confirmation that she had somehow gotten wrapped up in even more supernatural madness. "You're saying I somehow brought on these... premonitions when I remembered what happened after the attack?"_

 _Aya nodded. "In the simplest terms, you overpowered whatever manner this queen demon used to suppress your memories of her._ _She couldn't have been at full strength when she did so, otherwise there's no reason why she wouldn't have just killed you._ _It would have been in her nature to underestimate the strength of a mortal human's will, though._ _Based on what you've said has happened twice now, you seem to have forced her magic to betray its caster. So now, instead of her being able to manipulate your mind, you can get inside of hers."_

 _From the tone of her voice, it was clear Aya was already thinking several steps into the future, coming up with various ways this could be used to their advantage. But all it left Ginchiyo with was a sinking feeling in her gut._

 _"That's the problem though, Lady Aya," she emphasized. "I already said, I_ can't _control it. I don't know where to start, and it feels more like I'm at the mercy of whatever this sorcery is." Ginchiyo shook her head, trying to clear the faint ringing in her ears with no success. "Any tactician will tell you what a poor weapon something like that is. If there's one thing today should have taught us, it's that we can't afford to bring any more factors we don't have complete understanding of into this conflict."_

 _Just like that, it was as though Ginchiyo's words reset something in Aya, and the dark-haired woman abruptly fell back into the state she had assumed in the atrium. "No, of course," Aya said, turning away from Ginchiyo and facing the clear wall that stood behind the throne, looking out to the clouds forming on the horizon. "I'll leave it to you, Lady Ginchiyo. Have you seen to your soldiers yet?"_

 _Ginchiyo was able to take the hint. Aya still needed her own moment to process the aftermath of this battle, and the least Ginchiyo could do was not deny her that any longer. Even if Ginchiyo herself was hardly doing better on that field._

 _As she turned back to see Aya framed against the gray sky outside the castle, Ginchiyo was struck by the memory of how overwhelming it had all felt after she had just become warlord of Violight. She wondered if it would be out of place for her to offer the older woman advice, silently deciding now wasn't the time for that. Their own kingdoms' matters were calling to them._

* * *

The chaos in Illusio's city was a blur, the night's shadows and electricity from Luxray's attacks blending together as Ginchiyo raced through the streets. Yet as she spread the call that Violight's warriors were to fall back to the castle, Ginchiyo was tormented by the fear that she had already wasted too much time. And Aya hadn't needed to communicate that she would have much rather been leading her army in the defense of their home than waiting in the throne room to activate the teleportation crystal. Ginchiyo understood that perfectly.

But she knew she hadn't imagined the sights that had flashed through her head just before the attack had occurred. Alone in her room after the funeral, Ginchiyo had been overtaken again - and her mind's eye had shown her the portals opening over Illusio, Spectra, Aurora, Nixtorm, one kingdom after another. Gritting her teeth, Ginchiyo had done her best to block out the frequency humming in her ears, forcing the images to slow down until she could pull herself out. It had exhausted her more than she liked, but after a minute or so, she had been successful. Besides, Ginchiyo had seen more than enough.

At least Muneshige had followed her orders without asking questions. It was much easier to divide and conquer in a city the size of Illusio's, especially given the additional distraction that tailed Ginchiyo's every step. A part of her, too much of her, was having to dedicate all its strength to keeping Ginchiyo anchored in Illusio, the unceasing barrage of images and sounds that had opened inside her mind making its best effort to overwhelm her.

Something in Ginchiyo did curse Aya and her theories. She hadn't asked for this, access to a magic she couldn't even begin to understand. She hadn't asked to be exposed to it, for her memories to be taken and tampered with, to have had her home be ground zero for an otherwordly invasion of Ransei. Ginchiyo had been raised to know that life was generally not fair, but for the Legendary Pokemon's sake, hadn't the past few weeks already put her through enough?

There was no time to feel sorry for herself, though. Rallying the last of her troops, Ginchiyo lead them back towards the castle, resenting every second they had to wait for access to the castle warp. Ginchiyo was far from proud of leaving Aya in her own kingdom's time of need, but Violight had to be her first priority. Nothing, and no one, was going to stand in the way of that.

Before she stepped back through the crystal, Ginchiyo and Aya met eyes, Ginchiyo doing her best to convey an unspoken apology. Surely Aya understood too the pull of duty, that compromises and sacrifices had to be made for it. Aya seemed to focus more on the crystal than Ginchiyo.

The warp back to Violight was still disorienting, but Ginchiyo had been able to somewhat prepare herself for the sensation this time. When she stumbled back onto the stone floor of the hollowed-out cliff, the noise in her head briefly rose to a roar before Ginchiyo clamped down on it, seizing onto her link with Luxray instead as though it was the only thing tethering her to life. The familiar brush of her partner's wavelength was enough to help Ginchiyo find her senses.

A makeshift staircase had been quickly constructed in place of the old ladder, and while Ginchiyo could feel it straining beneath her feet as she lead the charge into the castle, it thankfully held strong. No sooner did she emerge into the corridor than the first sounds of a fight reached her ears. Taking the shortest path to the barracks, Ginchiyo and Luxray once more moved as one in aiding the first soldiers they encountered. Ginchiyo was immensely grateful she had held the foresight to leave enough troops behind so as to not have the castle be a sitting duck.

As more of the soldiers that had accompanied her to Illusio flowed into the barracks, Ginchiyo found Muneshige in the crowd and gestured in the direction of the courtyard. Just because the majority of the enemy seemed focused on the castle, Ginchiyo wasn't running the risk that their focus too would turn to the town beyond its gates.

If these demons could bleed, Ginchiyo was certain that the blade of her sword would have been permanently stained scarlet in the aftermath of the past two days. Her eyes had grown used to the smoke that erupted into her face each time she cut one down, her nose long desensitized to the odor of rot and decay that lingered in their wake. The familiar hum that filled her veins in combat was all the strength she needed to call on.

Ginchiyo and Muneshige followed the path of violence into the throne room, bursting through the already half-destroyed doors to see a demon brutally hurl a limp human body into the wall. It had been another small massacre in here, and the sickening realization hit Ginchiyo that this was where the youngest warriors had likely tried to shut themselves inside. "Once really wasn't enough, was it?" she snarled out loud, drawing the attention of the several demons nearest to her. As they advanced, Ginchiyo felt her fury over all the senseless slaughter she had witnessed burst inside her.

Muneshige and Staraptor created a literal whirlwind of chaos, forcing the groups of enemies apart with summoned winds. Muneshige lanced whatever stragglers came near enough to him, more than eager to repay the scar that the first attack had left slashing across his face. Ginchiyo and Luxray took advantage of the confusion, running into the center of the throng with the tailwind behind them.

The battle cry that tore from Ginchiyo's throat was the Electric warlord's savage song, a shockwave of rage that resounded in every corner of the throne room. Her sword swung downwards as the momentum of her charge carried her into the air, cutting Ginchiyo a path through the enemy from the center outwards. Even the demons that managed blows against her armor and the few portions of Ginchiyo's body that were less defended didn't have long to revel in their triumph. If Ginchiyo didn't promptly cut them down, Muneshige was quick to cover her blind spots.

Through it all, a sharp scent that seemed vaguely familiar to Ginchiyo began to build within the throne room. Only as the collective smoke from all the enemies she had slain thus far began to pool together did her mind register what it was - the same crackling of ozone that indicated whenever the twin lightning rods of the castle were collecting power. But there was no storm outside tonight.

The dark gray smoke recollected into a larger figure than before, clad in full armor and almost twice Ginchiyo's height. Ginchiyo hit the floor and rolled away from the first swing of its sword, Luxray leaping in the opposite direction. Muneshige ordered Staraptor to target the demon's eyes, but there was little more his partner could do than try to distract its sight without risking its own life. Muneshige met Ginchiyo's eyes as she fell back to his side, saw what she was planning to do. He charged forward, feinting in a bid to buy her the distraction she needed.

As Muneshige raised his lance against the demon and Luxray shot its own electricity towards it, Ginchiyo sprinted around the demon's side. Jumping onto the throne, she used the extra momentum to launch herself further upwards, giving her a shot at the exposed back of the demon's neck. Her strike went too low, scraping all the way down the demon's armored torso with an ear-grating screech.

The smell of ozone in the air intensified as sparks flew from the demon's black armor wherever Ginchiyo's blade touched it. Its attention drawn away from Muneshige and Luxray, it turned to face the solitary Ginchiyo, now standing back on the ground before her throne. Her entire body heaved with each breath she took in, the helm of Violight atop her head catching what little light remained within the room. She stared the demon down with a hundred unspoken curses, hefting her sword in preparation for what both she and Muneshige knew would one way or another be the final blow.

What happened next, neither Ginchiyo nor Muneshige supposed they would have believed had the other not also witnessed it. When Ginchiyo's blade met the demon's greatsword, the electrified scent that had permeated the entire throne room somehow grew even stronger, leaving Muneshige with a slight taste of copper in his mouth. Ginchiyo let out a scream of defiance, refusing to yield even as her arms trembled from the force of holding the enemy's blow back. And her sword responded.

An arc of white lightning shot out from the blade, piercing the demon right through its armored chest. Muneshige blinked, looking over at where Luxray was standing - there was no possible way that had been an attack of the Electric Pokemon's. The demon staggered backwards, and Ginchiyo's eyes automatically honed in on their target. Still feeling the sword vibrating in her hand, Ginchiyo sprang forward, swinging it out in an arc and tearing through the demon's unprotected neck. Its head dissolved in midair before it could hit the floor.

The groan that came from the body was the most hellish sound imaginable, as dozens of the shadowed creatures cried out and died as one. When it was over, Muneshige's head was spinning. Ginchiyo's breath came in shaky, uneven exhales as the energy she had been pouring into every strike was abruptly denied of any place else to go. They stood facing each other for several moments, until Ginchiyo gradually realized that no, neither of them seemed to be dead, and Muneshige was looking at her as though she possessed the light of a thousand sunrises.

Before either of them could move, a squadron of several soldiers entered the throne room, taking in the wreckage from both the earlier fight and the one Ginchiyo and Muneshige had just finished. "My lady... are you alright?" the commander hesitantly asked.

Tearing her eyes away from Muneshige, Ginchiyo nodded. "All clear. What's the status regarding the rest of the castle?"

"We seem to have pushed them back, my lady," the soldier reported. "I'm not sure for how long, though."

"Set up whoever is in fit condition on guard throughout the city," Ginchiyo ordered. "When those demons come back, I don't want them to have an easy fight there." Her choice of words was not lost on anyone.

The soldiers bowed before rushing out of the throne room, carrying her orders back to the barracks. Ginchiyo gradually heard some of the commotion in her mind dying down, although in other kingdoms the sounds of violence remained steady. It was going to be a long night for all of Ransei.

Looking down at the sword in her hand, Ginchiyo wanted to tell herself that she had just imagined that bolt of lightning. Surely it had been a well-aimed attack of Luxray's. Even though Luxray's electricity looked nothing like that.

Ginchiyo turned back to Muneshige and saw only the same questions reflected in his eyes.

* * *

Even inside Spectra's castle, the scent of smoke clung to the air. It stayed with No as she went about ensuring that the surviving civilians had safe places to stay for the night, either in the guest wing or within the barracks. It crept inside the shrine as she offered up all the strength she possessed to reinforce the wards around the castle. Even after a bath, No still felt as though a layer of ash had settled over her skin. Somehow, it was not even midnight.

But the moon's position couldn't lie. Now that No thought about it, the attack couldn't have lasted much longer than an hour. As if some force had called them back, the demons had dispelled only minutes after the temple. The smoldering pile of ruin in the center of the city, that had once been a temple, that whatever remained of her former junior warlord's body was buried beneath.

Although she was not a typical believer in self-pity, No nevertheless felt the least she had earned tonight was a drink. As the moon reached its peak in the sky, she entered her room with a bottle of wine and sat at her tea table, letting her exhaustion out in one long sigh as she poured herself a glass.

Lady Aya, that was where it had all started. Of course Lady Aya had been No's undoing, with that constant aura of self-righteousness and her damn holier-than-thou act that had set them at odds from their very first meeting. The magic No had sought to work on the amulet had really been no different from the spiritwork she had performed in the past; it had been Lady Aya's interference that brought about that disaster.

Failure wasn't a sensation that No was accustomed to. After all, the circumstances of her life had lead her to associate it with rather final consequences. There had never truly been a time until now where she had made an irreversible mistake, and all that had transpired in Illusio had shaken her more than she cared to admit.

It had been a long two days of firsts that No had never planned to be confronted by - the first time she had witnessed such a catastrophic backfire of spirit magic firsthand. The first time she had been unable to force a spirit into submission. Having to face Nobunaga with the knowledge of her failure before leaving Illusio.

As all the kingdoms were dealing with the immediate aftermath of the battle, Nobunaga had not pressed her for details, but No had read the disappointment in his eyes. Her relationship with Nobunaga was hardly the defining point of her life, but it had perhaps never rested on such an unfamiliar note.

No knew it wasn't truly that clouding her thoughts tonight, though. It was what had been wrought upon her own kingdom, that the enemy had grown bold enough to attack practically her front door and leave so much damage. No had, of course, rushed to the defense of the city just as quickly as her soldiers. Contrary to popular belief, if there was one thing in Ransei that No cared for, it was the people under her rule. Spectra was a small kingdom, but it had offered No all of its support when she had taken power, and never ceased to continue doing so in the six years since. No continued to repay it the way any proper warlord would: by defending it.

From a standpoint of practicality, No was aware that destruction and fatalities in the midst of such an attack would have been inevitable. Considering that she had managed to keep Spectra out of war's crosshairs for nearly her entire reign though, it was still salt in a wound. And the death hadn't been limited to soldiers who had sworn their lives to her, there had been civilians who were killed, some not even warriors. Then at the end, Okuni.

If No was opening that door tonight, she was going to need more wine. As she made to pour herself another glass, she abruptly felt it - the sense that she was no longer alone. The memory of the first time she had encountered a malevolent spirit returned to her, and No felt the same sensation now as she had then. The temperature in the room dropped, and No felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up as the air around her seemed to grow heavier. She was about to call on Mismagius when she heard a word hissed out on the air - _"Murderer."_

Six years to the day, as of midnight.

In all the events of the past weeks, No had lost track of time. Of course tonight was the night, the anniversary of her reclamation. And that meant that until sunrise, she would be subject to the final bit of her aunt's spite that had planted itself within the castle, a dying curse that was too much trouble to go about undoing when it only cost No one night of each year.

In hauntings past, No had tended to pointedly ignore whatever barbs the remnant of Fuyuka's spirit sent her way. It wasn't strong enough to do her any true harm, after all. But tonight, No had just about had her fill of uninvited spirits.

"Good evening, Fuyuka," she acknowledged in a flat voice as she caught a flicker of movement reflected in the mirror on her vanity. What form would her aunt's grudge be taking tonight, if she decided to show herself at all? What little variety she was able to enjoy out of her annual haunting, No tried to find. What visited No's room tonight was not truly the spirit of Fuyuka; No liked to believe that was roiling in hell. Dying curses held power though, especially ones made by daughters of Spectra, and could take on multiple forms of their invokers.

There was a slight rustling noise from the doors leading to No's balcony, but No refused to turn around. She kept her expression and breathing unaffected as the grudge whispered from behind her, _"Are we alone tonight? You know what a bother it is for me to be interrupted."_

In truth, neither Nobunaga nor Okuni's presence in years past had done the slightest bit to deter the grudge, only serving to make it grow more vicious if anything. No had never told Nobunaga about the haunting, and had never intended for Okuni to find out about it. In one case, she had been successful.

There was a blast of chill down No's spine as the grudge continued, its voice constantly shifting from Fuyuka's steely mezzo to a cackling lilt to an inhuman growl and all in between. _"I've heard new stories whispered to me in the dark. My rule wasn't enough for you anymore, you called down a wave of destruction upon Illusio as well? Or was that too only at the bequest of your dragon?"_

It was going to have to do better than that if it wanted a reaction out of No. Exaggerated tales of her reputation had preceded her for far too long now, often of No's own fabrication. As for the ones that weren't, No put little stock in them. Ransei could never seem to decide if she was Nobunaga's whore or some manner of witch who had enslaved and made him carry out _her_ bidding in his conquest. Really, was the true story of their partnership not lurid enough?

After several minutes more, the grudge seemed to realize that this was not the path that would win a reaction from her niece. No felt it move closer to her, until she was certain that if she looked up she would find it looming directly over her. _"I don't sense the presence of that shrine maiden you trapped here with you any more. Did she finally gain the sense to leave?"_

"She is gone," No answered, too sudden and stiff. The grudge was not to be fooled; it detected the false balance in No's voice and lunged.

 _"Gone? But why would you waste a second thought on that? Or could it be she reminded you of your companion, that foolish girl who gave her life so you could have mine? Don't think either of them cared for you, No. All you ever gave them was lies."_

"You remain deluded even in death," No scoffed. "Their opinions hardly mattered to me, yours even less." She reached for another glass, only to pause for the briefest moment when her fingertips brushed the now ice-cold surface of the bottle. That was new.

 _"You don't deny it,"_ the grudge pressed with satisfaction. _"That you held the shrine maiden's soul for ransom until she agreed to enter your service? That you cared not who might be caught in the crossfire of your own power seize? And you accused me of only ever thinking of myself."_

"If you're going to haunt me, at least do better than a history lesson," No said. "Why not go and demand their stories if you're so certain you're not the only spirit who resents me?" She realized her mistake a moment too late.

 _"The shrine maiden is dead?"_ The closest emotion No suspected a grudge could feel to glee entered its voice. _"While still in your service? I hope her spirit isn't expecting any form of remembrance."_ There was a rasping sound, like the grudge was breathing in. _"What is that scent of smoke on the air, No? Is all not well in your precious kingdom?"_

Stay calm, No reminded herself. All it wanted was to see her weakened, and it would sink to any number of low blows to achieve that. True, she was no longer proud of the circumstances surrounding the beginning of her involvement with Okuni. And true, she had failed those in Spectra tonight who had placed their faith in her. Until sunrise, she would be indifferent.

The grudge could sense it was closing in on a chink in No's armor, though. _"Say what you will about my rule, No, but I don't recall it ever involving Spectra going up in flames. If I sat on the throne again, perhaps I would be welcomed with more kindness after tonight."_

"You will never see any throne again," No asserted. "All you are is a vicious fragment of a sorry excuse of a woman, fueled only by your own spite."

 _"If I were in your position, I wouldn't sound so confident,"_ the grudge responded.

Against her better judgement, No rose to what she knew was bait. "And what is that supposed to mean?"

With an infuriating laugh, the grudge continued, _"Only that things are changing in Ransei for us vicious things. Her call reaches everywhere - even piercing the barriers you place around this castle. She knows what each of us seeks."_ There was a sound of breaking glass, and No finally whirled around to see that the mirror on her vanity had shattered. That wasn't right. A grudge wasn't supposed to be able to interact with physical objects at all, much less damage them.

No's traitorous heart began to pick up speed, and she fought to keep her outward form neutral. Grudges fed off fear most of all. No was not going to become the little girl on the run from a monster ever again.

"That's a new trick," she called out, ignoring the slash of pain she hadn't felt in years beginning to tear into her un-tattooed shoulder with the breaking of the mirror. "Perhaps in another six years you can graduate to making things levitate."

 _"Oh, I won't need that long,"_ the grudge said. _"You may find me much more whole than you remember, sooner than you expect."_ Without warning, No felt the unmistakable brush of a human hand against the old wound being re-carved into her flesh. That was finally more than she could bear.

With an enraged cry, No pushed back against whatever the grudge had been transformed into, both physically and with her own magic. Pulling the amethyst pendulum from where it had been pinned in her hair, No held it out in front of her and watched the stone wave wildly, defying gravity as it pointed vertically in midair towards where the grudge had still not revealed itself.

Using the pendulum as an amplifier, No blocked out the laughter of the grudge, forcing her own magic through the crystal point towards the spirit. Its glamour was blown away to reveal Fuyuka as No remembered her - but not in the final moments of her life, as she had been completely at No's mercy. This Fuyuka appeared disturbingly close to lifelike, and No knew she wasn't imagining the chaotic black aura that was radiating from the grudge's outline. Some outside force was strengthening its power.

 _"You can't banish me,"_ the grudge mocked. _"If you didn't want me to fester, you should have cut me off long ago."_

No felt her wavelength with Mismagius flare into connection, and knew the Ghost Pokemon was answering its partner's distress. She warned Mismagius down their link to prepare for the creation of a strong seal. Using this much magic in one night was going to take a toll on her in the morning, but No would spend time regretting that later.

Focusing on the object she planned to seal the grudge inside, No envisioned the combined power of her and Mismagius wrapping around the grudge's form, taking the form of links of chains binding themselves together. The grudge let out a howl of protest, but No's will was an unstoppable force. Hatred might be consuming, she thought, but there was no stronger force when it came to magic.

The ear-grating shriek given off by the grudge as No forced it towards her chosen container echoed in every corner of the room. "Your stay in this realm has ended!" No dictated, feeling the amethyst and the obsidian reacting with her own spirit magic. She had taken care to surround herself with such amplifiers as a precaution for events exactly as this. When attempted on its own, spirit binding was a notorious leech of energy.

A wave of dark magic buffeted No as she and Mismagius created the seal over the container, but at least No already had a source of blood to draw from. With her free hand, she reached for the re-opened scar on her shoulder and drew the sigil in the air with her bloodstained fingertip. There was a sound like a ragged exhale, and then the air in the room fell unnervingly still. Tentatively, No approached the only object that had been suitable for a container, Mismagius hanging back just behind her.

The glint of her dagger's obsidian blade winked at her in the darkness, and No knew that if it caught the light a certain way, she would be able to find Fuyuka's eyes reflected back instead of her own. It would not be a permanent solution, but it was the best No could do for now. She would have to wait and perform a proper exorcism when her energy had been fully replenished.

The throbbing in her right shoulder reminded No of the mirror's condition as well, but that too would have to wait until she could mend it and re-cast the glamour. Without even bothering to see if the bleeding had ceased, No collapsed onto her bed, murmuring for Mismagius to keep watch as blackness crept over her vision.

When No awoke, it was to the unremitting flare of Mismagius' wavelength. Her eyes took in the still somewhat dim lighting of the room, and in her still half-asleep state, she guessed that it was just barely dawn. Painfully forcing her body to sit up, No realized she didn't even need to access her link with her partner - it was frantically floating in and out of the doors to No's balcony, clearly indicating that there was something occurring outside that No needed to see.

Pushing the doors open, No was greeted by the familiar sight of Spectra's city laid out before her, although in the predawn light the damage from the night before took on a series of harsh silhouettes. Those were not what drew No's attention, though. She was aware of a commotion in both the castle and city below her as people threw open their own windows to try and make sense of what No was witnessing.

A pillar of scarlet and golden fire had erupted over the remains of the temple, shooting into the purple sky to seemingly pierce the heavens themselves. And despite the distance from where she stood on her balcony to the center of the city, No could somehow make out in clear detail the figure within its heart.

There was no possible way. No of all people understood the workings of death. But there was no mistaking the dance of the figure within the fire.

Somehow, Okuni was alive.


End file.
